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Erika (17789 KP) rated This Is a Robbery: The World's Greatest Art Heist in TV

May 1, 2021 (Updated May 1, 2021)

My review of this documentary may be slightly bias because I've read several books on the Gardner Heist, including the FBI Agent's memoir who nearly tracked down the missing paintings, but got stuck in a pissing contest between agencies.
First, I felt like they should have had this FBI Agent contribute more to the documentary, rather than presenting some other theories as to where the paintings ended up. I actually thought they were going to have him appear in the last ep, but he didn't. This would have bumped up the rating for me, honestly.
Second, so many conspiracy theories with the Italian mob. I just shook my head at this. Way too much focus. The police department's focus seemed half-ass, and like they took the easy way out by blaming the mob, then didn't interview actual witnesses again.
The BEST PART of this documentary series was when they interviewed a guy that is a member of the IRA. There was a theory that the IRA had lifted them. The guy basically told everyone to F-off, because the IRA wasn't involved. I cackled because it was completely hilarious.
Overall, this was just ok. It would probably be really interesting for people that don't know anything, or very little, about the Heist. Sure, this heist is interesting, but not 'The World's Greatest Heist'.

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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

May 3, 2021 (Updated May 3, 2021)

On my blog today, I've got a fascinating interview between Commander Brett Colton, the main character of the science fiction novel INFINITY'S GATEWAY, and its author James S. Parker. Check it out, and enter the giveaway to win a signed copy of the book - two winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2021/05/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-infinitys.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
Every year, all across the planet, people simply vanish, completely disappear and are never seen again. Some areas of the world are well known for this phenomenon. Infinity's Gateway opens with a very famous incident that took place just after the end of World War II with the United States Navy. The story then jumps to the present day with an unexplainable event that occurs off the coast of Florida, an event that cannot be ignored by the military.

The Navy ship Eclipse and its crew are sent to investigate, but after several days come up empty. Two days before returning to port, the event reoccurs, and the Eclipse is caught up in something it cannot escape. The Eclipse and its crew suddenly find themselves completely isolated, all communication lost, surrounded by a terribly hostile environment where each day is a struggle to survive. Infinity's Gateway is an intense, action packed story of survival, self-reliance, and discovery.

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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Jul 13, 2021 (Updated Jul 13, 2021)

Watch a video interview with author Susie Finkbeiner, and enter the giveaway to win a $10 Starbucks gift card, a print copy of the Christian contemporary fiction novel The Nature of Small Birds, and a puzzle on my blog!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2021/07/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-nature-of.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
In 1975, three thousand children were airlifted out of Saigon to be adopted into Western homes. When Mindy, one of those children, announces her plans to return to Vietnam to find her birth mother, her loving adopted family is suddenly thrown back to the events surrounding her unconventional arrival in their lives.

Though her father supports Mindy's desire to meet her family of origin, he struggles privately with an unsettling fear that he'll lose the daughter he's poured his heart into. Mindy's mother undergoes the emotional rollercoaster inherent in the adoption of a child from a war-torn country, discovering the joy hidden amid the difficulties. And Mindy's sister helps her sort through relics that whisper of the effect the trauma of war has had on their family--but also speak of the beauty of overcoming.

Told through three strong voices in three compelling timelines, The Nature of Small Birds is a hopeful story that explores the meaning of family far beyond genetic code.

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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated In Five Years in Books

Dec 17, 2020

In Five Years

Rebecca Serle | 2020 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Romance

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

This is the ninth book in my #atozchallenge! I'm challenging myself to read a book from my shelves that starts with each letter of the alphabet. Let's clear those shelves and delve into that backlist!

Dannie Kohan is a lawyer with a five-year plan. Her life is all calculated. She's just had the job interview she's been planning for, she's engaged: everything is on track. But when she falls asleep, she's transported for one hour into a different life, the same night five years in the future (2025). In that life, she has a different ring on her finger in a different apartment--and with a different guy by her side. When she wakes up, she can't shake that it wasn't just a dream. She tries to forget that hour, until she meets that same man, four and a half years later. What does it mean?

This book is best gone into blind, but I will say that I really enjoyed this one. It's a fast read with excellent characters--I quite liked Dannie, who is nuanced and flawed, but real. The premise is interesting, as is the fact that that one hour basically changes Dannie's whole life. This novel is sad, at times, truly touching, and completely captivating. I definitely recommend it. 4 stars.