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Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Night Watch (DS Max Craigie #3) in Books
Sep 4, 2022
I have read the first 2 in this series and absolutely loved them so I was a bit worried that Mr Lancaster wouldn't be able to match them however, I have to say that he has exceeded my expectations because this is an absolute cracker.
DS Max Craigie and his team are a small but formidable group; their relationship and dialogue feels authentic and I have found myself becoming rather attached to them. Max's boss, DI Ross Fraser, provided me much amusement and laugh out loud moments which helped to lighten what is a dark story of what appears to be vigilante justice with a strong suspicion that the perpetrator is a serving police officer. When he is found dead of an apparent suicide, Max and his team are convinced it was murder but how and who is responsible and who will be next?
Once again, this is a gritty, fast paced and absorbing police procedural with an engrossing plot with great twists and excellent characters and although it can be read as a standalone quite successfully, I would highly recommend reading the first 2 in the series not only because it will help with getting to know the characters but also because they are damn fine books!
Bravo Mr Lancaster, you have a fan here and I can't wait to read the next and I must thank HQ, HQ Digital and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Night Watch.
DS Max Craigie and his team are a small but formidable group; their relationship and dialogue feels authentic and I have found myself becoming rather attached to them. Max's boss, DI Ross Fraser, provided me much amusement and laugh out loud moments which helped to lighten what is a dark story of what appears to be vigilante justice with a strong suspicion that the perpetrator is a serving police officer. When he is found dead of an apparent suicide, Max and his team are convinced it was murder but how and who is responsible and who will be next?
Once again, this is a gritty, fast paced and absorbing police procedural with an engrossing plot with great twists and excellent characters and although it can be read as a standalone quite successfully, I would highly recommend reading the first 2 in the series not only because it will help with getting to know the characters but also because they are damn fine books!
Bravo Mr Lancaster, you have a fan here and I can't wait to read the next and I must thank HQ, HQ Digital and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Night Watch.
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post
Aug 4, 2022
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2163 KP) rated Fatal Fascinator in Books
Jan 4, 2023
Deadly Wedding of the Year
Cousins Scarlett and Viv have agreed to create the hats for the wedding of the season. Scarlett is mainly excited because it means they’ve scored an invitation, and the wedding is taking place in a castle in the country. Even their friend Andre is there as the wedding photographer. But joy turns to tragedy when Scarlett finds the dead body of the groom in the library. With no one allowed to leave while the police investigate, Scarlett can’t help but poked around. Will she figure out what happened?
Since author Jenn McKinlay is so busy writing, we don’t get quite as many entries in this series as in some of her others. That makes it nice to get to revisit these characters again. A few of the regulars have cameos than a real part, but it was still nice to see everyone and see how they are continuing to grow. The book is filled with suspects, but I never had a hard time keeping them all straight. The story was always moving forward, and the plot had a few nice surprises on the way to the climax. The pages just flew by. Meanwhile, there were plenty of moments that made me laugh or grin, including some pun wars, which I always enjoy. Whether you are a fan of the series or just checking it out, you’ll enjoy this book.
Since author Jenn McKinlay is so busy writing, we don’t get quite as many entries in this series as in some of her others. That makes it nice to get to revisit these characters again. A few of the regulars have cameos than a real part, but it was still nice to see everyone and see how they are continuing to grow. The book is filled with suspects, but I never had a hard time keeping them all straight. The story was always moving forward, and the plot had a few nice surprises on the way to the climax. The pages just flew by. Meanwhile, there were plenty of moments that made me laugh or grin, including some pun wars, which I always enjoy. Whether you are a fan of the series or just checking it out, you’ll enjoy this book.
Merissa (11938 KP) rated Alexi (Tangled Tentacles #1) in Books
Mar 23, 2022 (Updated Jun 30, 2023)
ALEXI is the first book in a new series about a group of Kraken shifters who are called in to assist the police on several missing people cases - or is it a serial murderer? Danik is worried it will be swept away as a serial killer when he just knows they are still alive. Alexi soon puts those fears to rest once they realise they are mates. No way will Alexi go against Danik like that.
So, what do you have? A group of close brothers who tease each other constantly. Different personalities I am looking forward to getting to know. A possibly crooked police force. Missing paranormals, presumed dead, but oh so alive according to Danik. It's all here, and it's FUN.
I loved the way the personalities worked well with each other. Danik and Alexi are just wonderful, giving me warm, squidgy feelings whenever they are soft and cuddly. It is funny, with some brilliant one-liners that kept me amused. The pacing is spot-on, and the ending leads perfectly to the next book.
What's next? A Kraken and a Vampire. Oh, boy!
I honestly can't wait to continue this series. Absolutely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
Mar 21, 2022
So, what do you have? A group of close brothers who tease each other constantly. Different personalities I am looking forward to getting to know. A possibly crooked police force. Missing paranormals, presumed dead, but oh so alive according to Danik. It's all here, and it's FUN.
I loved the way the personalities worked well with each other. Danik and Alexi are just wonderful, giving me warm, squidgy feelings whenever they are soft and cuddly. It is funny, with some brilliant one-liners that kept me amused. The pacing is spot-on, and the ending leads perfectly to the next book.
What's next? A Kraken and a Vampire. Oh, boy!
I honestly can't wait to continue this series. Absolutely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
Mar 21, 2022
Darren (1599 KP) rated Until Death (2007) in Movies
Jul 25, 2019
Story: Until Death starts as we see how Anthony Stowe (Van Damme) operates under his own addictions of heroin, sex alcohol which has put his career on the edge, his marriage in the drain and his enemy Gabriel Callaghan (Rea) is getting away with the crimes he wants.
When Gabriel catches up with Anthony, he puts a bullet in his skull leaving him for dead, only to leave him in a coma in which he shouldn’t recover from. 6 months later he awakens from his coma and is left to the care of his estranged wife Valerie (Giles), as he recovers it turns out he has changed becoming a better person and even more determined to track down Gabriel.
Thoughts on Until Death
Characters – Anthony Stowes is a dirty cop, hooked on heroin with enemies in the force and on the streets, the methods have made his hard to work with and his long running pursuit of Callaghan puts him in the firing line. After he gets shot and left for dead, he must recover, a process which see him changing to become a better man. Valerie is the wife that is about to divorce Anthony after years of problems between the two, after his injury she takes him in even though she has moved on with her life. Gabriel Callaghan is the ruthless mobster trying to get ahead in the city, he disposes of anyone that gets in his way and won’t let Stowe stop his plan.
Performances – We watch Van Damme movies to watch him kick ass, not because of his acting standards, he is good through the film as does give us a chance to work on his serious reactions, he doesn’t get to show the fighting enough though. Selina Giles does struggle with her role though, you never believe her acting in this role. Stephen Rea does seem to enjoy this villainous role where he can become darker as the film unfolds.
Story – The story follows a dirty cop that goes head to head with a crime boss only for his crashing life to be turned around by a near death experience. The pacing of the story is slow for my liking, we spend too much time with the bad version of Stowe and not enough on the reborn versions road to redemption, which is by the book. Granted we don’t need the deepest story here because we know what we are getting going into the film.
Action/Crime – The action is held back for the final act of the movie, which is fine, but when you have Van Damme in the leading role, you would expect more. The crime side of the film does play into the bigger picture of what is going on which give the characters the biggest part of the development they get.
Settings – The film uses New Orleans as the setting which is always a city used for dirty cop locations, it works well without being over used for the films backdrop.
Scene of the Movie – Final act is the saving grace of the film.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The damn camera turns.
Final Thoughts – This is a typical Van Damme action movie, it tries to give us a serious side without being able to capture this and we are saved by a final act action sequence which is entertaining to watch.
Overall: Van Damme 101
When Gabriel catches up with Anthony, he puts a bullet in his skull leaving him for dead, only to leave him in a coma in which he shouldn’t recover from. 6 months later he awakens from his coma and is left to the care of his estranged wife Valerie (Giles), as he recovers it turns out he has changed becoming a better person and even more determined to track down Gabriel.
Thoughts on Until Death
Characters – Anthony Stowes is a dirty cop, hooked on heroin with enemies in the force and on the streets, the methods have made his hard to work with and his long running pursuit of Callaghan puts him in the firing line. After he gets shot and left for dead, he must recover, a process which see him changing to become a better man. Valerie is the wife that is about to divorce Anthony after years of problems between the two, after his injury she takes him in even though she has moved on with her life. Gabriel Callaghan is the ruthless mobster trying to get ahead in the city, he disposes of anyone that gets in his way and won’t let Stowe stop his plan.
Performances – We watch Van Damme movies to watch him kick ass, not because of his acting standards, he is good through the film as does give us a chance to work on his serious reactions, he doesn’t get to show the fighting enough though. Selina Giles does struggle with her role though, you never believe her acting in this role. Stephen Rea does seem to enjoy this villainous role where he can become darker as the film unfolds.
Story – The story follows a dirty cop that goes head to head with a crime boss only for his crashing life to be turned around by a near death experience. The pacing of the story is slow for my liking, we spend too much time with the bad version of Stowe and not enough on the reborn versions road to redemption, which is by the book. Granted we don’t need the deepest story here because we know what we are getting going into the film.
Action/Crime – The action is held back for the final act of the movie, which is fine, but when you have Van Damme in the leading role, you would expect more. The crime side of the film does play into the bigger picture of what is going on which give the characters the biggest part of the development they get.
Settings – The film uses New Orleans as the setting which is always a city used for dirty cop locations, it works well without being over used for the films backdrop.
Scene of the Movie – Final act is the saving grace of the film.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The damn camera turns.
Final Thoughts – This is a typical Van Damme action movie, it tries to give us a serious side without being able to capture this and we are saved by a final act action sequence which is entertaining to watch.
Overall: Van Damme 101
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Stranger Things - Season 3 in TV
Jul 6, 2019
Getting better with age
I've loved all 3 seasons of ST so far but this is the best so far. It's just just sublime. All the characters get depth and development whilst introducing a few new ones. The nostalgia shown in this is superb and unapologetic. At one point Mike and Lucas are having a convo about coka cola classic vs new coke and (very post modern tongue firmly in cheek) Lucas says 'classic is good but the remake is better'. Terminator, evil dead, back 2 the future, day of the dead, invasion of the body snatchers and many more are lovingly referenced with possibly the greatest and funniest being a brilliant neverending story shout out. The gore and horror is there in spades with more a focus on body horror and some very 'Lovecraftian' scenes which are equally awesome & disgusting. Steve & Dustin are the stars and continue their great team up from season 2 and honestly I think a spin off where they have a detective agency would be an amazing show that needs to be made!! It'll make u laugh, it'll make u cry but you will love it...PS keep watching for a post credits scene in last episode! Season 4 I cant wait!!!
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Raven (1963) in Movies
Feb 9, 2018 (Updated Feb 9, 2018)
Vincent Price Broods Over His Dead Wife's Portrait (Yet Again)
Roger Corman's cycle of Poe-inspired movies goes into full-on comedy mode with this tale of squabbling magicians (played by Vincent Price, Peter Lorre and Boris Karloff). It is, obviously, only very loosely inspired by Poe's poem, but then you can only stretch 108 lines of verse so far.
The fun is in the performances, with the veteran cast members competing to ham it up more extravagantly. Also knocking about the lower reaches of the cast list is Jack Nicholson, really showing not much sign of the talent that would earn him so many Oscar nominations in later years.
Knockabout stuff, but well played and often very funny. Not actually much of a horror movie, though, certainly by modern standards.
The fun is in the performances, with the veteran cast members competing to ham it up more extravagantly. Also knocking about the lower reaches of the cast list is Jack Nicholson, really showing not much sign of the talent that would earn him so many Oscar nominations in later years.
Knockabout stuff, but well played and often very funny. Not actually much of a horror movie, though, certainly by modern standards.
Merissa (11938 KP) rated Birthrights (The Awakening Trilogy #1) in Books
Dec 17, 2018
This is the story of Caislyn and Jax, two very different women with attitude!
Jax has run away from an abusive relationship and started a new life. She considers herself wholly human in a world where the 'paranormal' exists.
Caislyn is a witch whose parents are missing and the world, including her lawyer, presume dead although she refuses to believe this.
Throw them together and what have you got? A fast-paced, punchy book that made me laugh with their humour and search along with them for answers. Vampires are "alive and kicking" in this book but are not, for once, in the hot seat but more a back seat driver which makes a nice change.
Will definitely be getting the second and third books in this series.
Jax has run away from an abusive relationship and started a new life. She considers herself wholly human in a world where the 'paranormal' exists.
Caislyn is a witch whose parents are missing and the world, including her lawyer, presume dead although she refuses to believe this.
Throw them together and what have you got? A fast-paced, punchy book that made me laugh with their humour and search along with them for answers. Vampires are "alive and kicking" in this book but are not, for once, in the hot seat but more a back seat driver which makes a nice change.
Will definitely be getting the second and third books in this series.
Versusyours (757 KP) rated CBGB (2013) in Movies
Nov 16, 2019
Soundtrack (1 more)
Allan Rickman
Pre punk to post punk
As a lover of Punk it was only a matter of time before I watched this and it felt like a compilation album with extended talking in between. Loosely based on Hilly Crystal the owner of CBGS's in New York and the place where punk was formed.
There are appearances from Television, Talking Heads, The Ramones, The Dead Boys and it shows that Blondies did have more fun. The story is nothing too taxing and it's weaved round the music. Some famous faces and a Harry Potter characters bare bum as he proves his natural hair colour out of the cameras beady eye.
So if you like Punk, bare bums and don't mind a young Sting then this could help your life in a small way
There are appearances from Television, Talking Heads, The Ramones, The Dead Boys and it shows that Blondies did have more fun. The story is nothing too taxing and it's weaved round the music. Some famous faces and a Harry Potter characters bare bum as he proves his natural hair colour out of the cameras beady eye.
So if you like Punk, bare bums and don't mind a young Sting then this could help your life in a small way
B
Backstabber
10.0
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The final thrilling showdown between the Mitchells and the Butlers. This is Kimberley Chambers at...