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Peaky Blinders - Season 1
9.3
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TV Season Watch
A gangster family drama set on the verge of the 1920s. Tommy Shelby is head of the Shelby family...
Gangster Drama
El_kincho (51 KP) rated Mortal Kombat (2021) in Movies
Jul 16, 2021
Fight scenes (3 more)
Kano
Hiroyuki Sanada
Special effects
New character Cole Young a bit weak (1 more)
Some dialog ve
I've been a big fan of Mortal kombat ever since playing the games . The previous films never really did the games much justice but I feel this one has gotten the closet . Hiroyuki Sanada was perfect as scorpion and so was Joe taslim as sub zero. Kano pretty much stole every scene he was in and was a good comic character . The new character of Cole Young was ok but seemed a bit weak in development with his character . The dialog was cheesy in places but then hey. Thos is Mortal Kombat ... who cares about dialog .... the fight scenes and fatalities were spot on . I hope they do more like this
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2086 KP) rated Taken in Books
Jun 5, 2019
Elvis Cole and Joe Pike Track the Taken
Los Angeles PI Elvis Cole is hired by Nita Morales to find her daughter Krista. Krista and her boyfriend, Jack, disappeared several days ago. Nita has received a ransom call, but she was only asked for $500. Surely, this is just Krista and Jack trying to get some money from Nita so they can elope, right? However, Elvis quickly begins to determine that Krista and Jack are in serious danger; they’ve been kidnapped by a group that captures illegal immigrants trying to get into California. But knowing what happened to them only increases the stakes. Can Elvis and his partner, Joe Pike, find the two young adults and rescue them before it is too late?
This book is an amazing thrill ride. The story starts off fast, and it never really lets go until we reach the end. However, it is too much like a movie thriller, which means it has some serious weaknesses. The characters, even series leads Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, are shallow. This doesn’t help since there are a lot of players we have to try to keep straight. Author Robert Crais uses shifting timelines to help increase the tension, which works as intended, but he notes the time in a way that grows confusing as the book progresses; he even spoils a major plot point early on as a result. The book is brutal and filled with foul language. While I expect that when reading one of Robert Crais’s books, this one seemed excessive, even by his standards. Despite all these negatives, I still found the book extremely addicting and impossible to stop thinking about. It’s worth reading as long as you keep your expectations appropriate going into the book.
This book is an amazing thrill ride. The story starts off fast, and it never really lets go until we reach the end. However, it is too much like a movie thriller, which means it has some serious weaknesses. The characters, even series leads Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, are shallow. This doesn’t help since there are a lot of players we have to try to keep straight. Author Robert Crais uses shifting timelines to help increase the tension, which works as intended, but he notes the time in a way that grows confusing as the book progresses; he even spoils a major plot point early on as a result. The book is brutal and filled with foul language. While I expect that when reading one of Robert Crais’s books, this one seemed excessive, even by his standards. Despite all these negatives, I still found the book extremely addicting and impossible to stop thinking about. It’s worth reading as long as you keep your expectations appropriate going into the book.
Peaky Blinders - Season 2
7.5
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TV Season Watch
Britain is a mixture of despair and hedonism in 1919 in the aftermath of the Great War. Returning...
Better Call Saul - Season 1
9.3
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TV Season Watch
This Emmy-nominated prequel to "Breaking Bad" follows small-time attorney Jimmy McGill as he...
The Good Wife - Season 1
TV Season Watch
In this courtroom drama, attorney Alicia Florrick finds herself forced to return to work after a...
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2086 KP) rated Sunset Express (Elvis Cole, #6) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
Elvis Cole and Joe Pike are hired by the Big Green Defense Machine to help find evidence that Jonathan Green’s latest client is indeed innocent of killing his wife. However, Cole soon begins to suspect that not everything is as it appears in this case. Can he find the truth? Or has he been played?
This is definitely one of the stronger entries in the series with an intriguing mystery that twists and turns until we reach a non- dues ex machina ending. We get some appearances by characters introduced in earlier books, which is quite fun. Things do slow down at one point, and there is one mostly pointless scene designed to increase the foul language content in the book (not that it was ever an issue). Still, this is the strongest in the series yet.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/10/book-review-sunset-express-by-robert.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
This is definitely one of the stronger entries in the series with an intriguing mystery that twists and turns until we reach a non- dues ex machina ending. We get some appearances by characters introduced in earlier books, which is quite fun. Things do slow down at one point, and there is one mostly pointless scene designed to increase the foul language content in the book (not that it was ever an issue). Still, this is the strongest in the series yet.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/10/book-review-sunset-express-by-robert.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2086 KP) rated A Dangerous Man in Books
Sep 20, 2019
“We Know Your Secret.”
Joe Pike’s trip to the bank for a routine deposit ends when he witnesses two men try to kidnap his teller, Isabel Roland. Joe being Joe, he jumps into action and rescues her. However, when the kidnappers are released from jail, they are both murdered. Was kidnapping Isabel a crime of opportunity, or was she a target? Is she safe? Why would someone target her?
Those familiar with the series will notice a similar set up to a previous entry, but that’s where the similarity ends. This book takes off in some unexpected places, and author Robert Crais uses multiple viewpoints well to hook us as events unfold. This is a thriller that kept me glued the entire time. While we don’t learn much new about PI partners Elvis Cole or Joe Pike, it is wonderful to spend time with them and see them in action again. Most of the new characters are wonderful and fully developed, but a few very minor characters are very annoying. Likewise, I don’t find John Chen, a recurring character in the series, that funny. I’m sure the characters who annoy me are supposed to be comic relief, but I just don’t get it. While the book certainly has more language and violence than the cozies I normally read, I didn’t feel it was excessive here. Elvis and Joe have a huge following, and I’m sure there many fans will be thrilled with this book. Pick it up and hang on because it is going to be a very wild ride you won’t want to put down.
Those familiar with the series will notice a similar set up to a previous entry, but that’s where the similarity ends. This book takes off in some unexpected places, and author Robert Crais uses multiple viewpoints well to hook us as events unfold. This is a thriller that kept me glued the entire time. While we don’t learn much new about PI partners Elvis Cole or Joe Pike, it is wonderful to spend time with them and see them in action again. Most of the new characters are wonderful and fully developed, but a few very minor characters are very annoying. Likewise, I don’t find John Chen, a recurring character in the series, that funny. I’m sure the characters who annoy me are supposed to be comic relief, but I just don’t get it. While the book certainly has more language and violence than the cozies I normally read, I didn’t feel it was excessive here. Elvis and Joe have a huge following, and I’m sure there many fans will be thrilled with this book. Pick it up and hang on because it is going to be a very wild ride you won’t want to put down.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2086 KP) rated The Sentry in Books
Apr 23, 2019
Wrong Place, Wrong Time – But for Whom?
It all started because Joe Pike stopped to put air in his tires. While he is at the service station, he notices two suspicious men about to enter a sandwich stop across the street. Pike follows them and stops them from beating up the owner, Wilson Smith. When Pike is waiting to talk to the police, he meets Wilson’s niece, Dru Rayne. Both of them are refuges from New Oreleans, feeling after Hurricane Katrina five years before the story starts. When trouble comes for the duo again, Dru calls Pike, who brings his friend and partner Elvis Cole in to help. Elvis begins to uncover clues that things aren’t quite what they appear to be. What has the innocent act of stopping at a service station and doing a good deed gotten the duo into?
Thanks to the multiple view point narration, we have an idea what else might be happening before Pike and Cole do, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t interested. There is so much going on that what we are privy to is only a small part of the story. There are plenty of twists as this thriller works its way to the climax. Along the way we get new insight into both Joe Pike and Elvis Cole. We do see a few of the recurring characters, but they don’t get enough page time for any real development. The new characters are engaging enough to help keep us invested in the story. Even though we get some passages from Cole’s point of view, his humor is missing here, and I would have enjoyed it. Even by this series’ standards, this book is violent. While these books always have more language and violence than my normal cozy mysteries, I felt what we got here could have been tone down without impacting the story in the slightest.
Thanks to the multiple view point narration, we have an idea what else might be happening before Pike and Cole do, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t interested. There is so much going on that what we are privy to is only a small part of the story. There are plenty of twists as this thriller works its way to the climax. Along the way we get new insight into both Joe Pike and Elvis Cole. We do see a few of the recurring characters, but they don’t get enough page time for any real development. The new characters are engaging enough to help keep us invested in the story. Even though we get some passages from Cole’s point of view, his humor is missing here, and I would have enjoyed it. Even by this series’ standards, this book is violent. While these books always have more language and violence than my normal cozy mysteries, I felt what we got here could have been tone down without impacting the story in the slightest.