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Ali A (78 KP) rated Firekeeper's Daughter in Books
Mar 23, 2021
Debut author Angeline Boulley crafts a groundbreaking YA thriller about a Native teen who must root out the corruption in her community, for readers of Angie Thomas and Tommy Orange.
As a biracial, unenrolled tribal member and the product of a scandal, eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. Daunis dreams of studying medicine, but when her family is struck by tragedy, she puts her future on hold to care for her fragile mother.
The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team. Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, certain details don’t add up and she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into the heart of a criminal investigation.
Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, but secretly pursues her own investigation, tracking down the criminals with her knowledge of chemistry and traditional medicine. But the deceptions—and deaths—keep piling up and soon the threat strikes too close to home.
Now, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she'll go to protect her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.
As a biracial, unenrolled tribal member and the product of a scandal, eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. Daunis dreams of studying medicine, but when her family is struck by tragedy, she puts her future on hold to care for her fragile mother.
The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team. Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, certain details don’t add up and she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into the heart of a criminal investigation.
Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, but secretly pursues her own investigation, tracking down the criminals with her knowledge of chemistry and traditional medicine. But the deceptions—and deaths—keep piling up and soon the threat strikes too close to home.
Now, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she'll go to protect her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated The Babysitter: Killer Queen (2020) in Movies
Sep 26, 2020
Not a patch on the first
The Babysitter was a surprisingly good film, in all it's cheesy gory goodness and whilst it was a shock to see they had made a sequel, I was really hoping it'd have the same music. Sadly it didn't.
I feel like the success of the first film may have gone to the makers heads. They've tried to take what worked in the first film and take it to the extremes - the back stories of the original characters, in jokes and references - but the problem is that for the most part it just doesn't work. Seeing the original characters back is fun for a minute and then it (and they) just become irritating. This film really does suffer from the lack of Samara Weaving who doesn't have nearly enough screen time. Judah Lewis is fine but his relationship with Phoebe isn't at all interesting and watchable like his one with Bea.
The gore and deaths are quite fun, but the majority of this film just comes across as cringeworthy rather than cheesily good like the original. I really don't know what the ending was about and why they decided to go down this route. This almost spoils the original and I think is yet another case of a sequel that should never have been made.
I feel like the success of the first film may have gone to the makers heads. They've tried to take what worked in the first film and take it to the extremes - the back stories of the original characters, in jokes and references - but the problem is that for the most part it just doesn't work. Seeing the original characters back is fun for a minute and then it (and they) just become irritating. This film really does suffer from the lack of Samara Weaving who doesn't have nearly enough screen time. Judah Lewis is fine but his relationship with Phoebe isn't at all interesting and watchable like his one with Bea.
The gore and deaths are quite fun, but the majority of this film just comes across as cringeworthy rather than cheesily good like the original. I really don't know what the ending was about and why they decided to go down this route. This almost spoils the original and I think is yet another case of a sequel that should never have been made.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Cube (1997) in Movies
Oct 14, 2019
A cult classic
I first watched Cube when I was at college, it was a bit of a cult classic at the time and I absolutely loved it. Sadly watching it back now is maybe a tad disappointing.
Plot wise this is a brilliant idea, and a great early example of the type of torture style horror that we're used to from the likes of Saw and Hostel. Some of the CGI is a bit dodgy (not a surprise considering it was made in 1997) but the deaths and traps are still really inventive and well thought out. The story may get a little too deep into Maths later on but it's still a very good idea. The problem with this film is mainly the acting. Aside from David Hewlett (who I can't fault after his turn as McKay in Stargate), there is a lot of very hammy over acting going on in this, notably from the character of Quentin but the others are at fault too. And when paired with a very patchy script- I mean who the hell says "holy cats" - it brings this film down a couple of notches that the plot really doesn't deserve. I loved the ending though, and I do think this is a film worthy of a cult classic.
Plot wise this is a brilliant idea, and a great early example of the type of torture style horror that we're used to from the likes of Saw and Hostel. Some of the CGI is a bit dodgy (not a surprise considering it was made in 1997) but the deaths and traps are still really inventive and well thought out. The story may get a little too deep into Maths later on but it's still a very good idea. The problem with this film is mainly the acting. Aside from David Hewlett (who I can't fault after his turn as McKay in Stargate), there is a lot of very hammy over acting going on in this, notably from the character of Quentin but the others are at fault too. And when paired with a very patchy script- I mean who the hell says "holy cats" - it brings this film down a couple of notches that the plot really doesn't deserve. I loved the ending though, and I do think this is a film worthy of a cult classic.
Tim McGuire (301 KP) rated The Devil's Candy (2015) in Movies
Aug 17, 2019
Pruitt Taylor Vince perfectly cast...
265. The Devil's Candy. A pretty intense horror/thriller about everyone's favorite superhero: Satan!! Ok, it's more about the people that fall under that sly bastards charms... Jesse and Astrid move into a pretty sweet old house with their daughter, Zooey. Yea, sure the previous occupants died in the house under totally normal circumstances, a-hem, but it's just a house right. Everything is all razor blades and rainbows until the previous occupant of the house shows up and wants in... After that metal head Jesse, because metal heads worship Satan, starts hearing the dark lords sweet nothings in his ear, and unleashes itself in the form of Jesse's art... And the picture he paints, oh boy... Flames... his daughter... and dead kiddies... Yea it seems, the previous occupant, Ray, well maybe his parents deaths weren't so natural, and he may hear voices too... Pretty violent at times but also coated in a hidden layer of religious crap... it was a decent flick... Cool Metal soundtrack... Choosing Pruitt Taylor Vince to play a child murderer, always an excellent choice!! They dug up Ethan Embry for this one painted him like Jesus a bit, Shiri Appleby of Roswell fame (lol) and Angelina Jolie's hollywood clone as the daughter. Under 1 1/2 hours, you got the time, chillax, watch... Filmbufftim on FB
Desert Blood: The Juarez Murders
7.0
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It's the summer of 1998 and for five years over a hundred mangled and desecrated bodies have been...
Sara Cox (1845 KP) rated Sex Robots and Vegan Meat in Books
May 20, 2020
The book is divided into four parts: sex robots, vegan meat, out of body birth bags and end of life methods. These are all things in development around the globe to improve (?) people's lives. Each section is a very interesting read. How they are trying to make sex robots more life like; delving into the socio-economical aspects of them going on to the market. I found it very interesting that the majority of vegan meat developments are not about culturing meat from animal cells than using plant based products. It was also interesting that the majority of people working in this industry are vegan and therefore the taste and texture was difficult to test as very few meat eaters were testing. The birthing bag to me seemed like the strangest concept of all four. But I can definitely see the benefits in terms of reducing still births, monitoring development and the ability to have a child even when your body is unable. The strangest concept was definitely the end of life programs. People were planning their deaths and ways of doing it, and not because they were ill but just in case and ready.
The book was really well written and captivating. All concepts were thought-provoking. A really good read for those interested in scientific developments and the future of our society.
The book was really well written and captivating. All concepts were thought-provoking. A really good read for those interested in scientific developments and the future of our society.
Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated Saw (2004) in Movies
Jun 13, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
Doctor Lawrence Gordon and Adam Faulkner-Stanheight both wake up chained to opposite sides of a dingy room with only a handful of clues the two men must find their way out and save the doctors family.
Most of the film focus not on the two trapped men’s escape attempt but on the past couple of days and on the ‘Jigsaw’ killers previous traps which show the events that led to, not only Adam & Lawrence’s imprisonment but also to how Jigsaw is tracked down by the now disgraced Detective Trapp.
The previous trap rooms all seem a lot simpler than the one set up for Adam and Lawrence and this does seem to be the first one that involves people outside the room.
Saw contains a lot of threat, a bit of gore and bodies that died violent deaths but the graphic scenes are no worst than films like ‘Seven’ and, like Seven, Saw doesn’t focus that much on the actual killer but on his actions and the effects they are having on his victims and it only hints at how long Jigsaw has been active for. The one thing I will say about the violence is that it does show consequences, the doctor is shown to suffer after cutting off his foot and, most of the time, shooting and stabbing does lead to injuries.
Most of the film focus not on the two trapped men’s escape attempt but on the past couple of days and on the ‘Jigsaw’ killers previous traps which show the events that led to, not only Adam & Lawrence’s imprisonment but also to how Jigsaw is tracked down by the now disgraced Detective Trapp.
The previous trap rooms all seem a lot simpler than the one set up for Adam and Lawrence and this does seem to be the first one that involves people outside the room.
Saw contains a lot of threat, a bit of gore and bodies that died violent deaths but the graphic scenes are no worst than films like ‘Seven’ and, like Seven, Saw doesn’t focus that much on the actual killer but on his actions and the effects they are having on his victims and it only hints at how long Jigsaw has been active for. The one thing I will say about the violence is that it does show consequences, the doctor is shown to suffer after cutting off his foot and, most of the time, shooting and stabbing does lead to injuries.
Bloodline: A Novel
4.0
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A gritty historical novel about the Mafia in 1920s New York, from Edgar Award—winning author...
Deadly Outbreaks
9.0
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Despite advances in health care, infectious microbes continue to be a formidable adversary to...
Science medicine
Firekeeper's Daughter
9.3
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Book
Debut author Angeline Boulley crafts a groundbreaking YA thriller about a Native teen who must root...