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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated The Murder Book in Books
Apr 4, 2019
I was really happy to see Lissa Marie Redmond's Lauren Riley back again. I enjoyed her first book, A Cold Day in Hell a lot and this one was a great addition. The second Lauren Riley installment focuses more on Lauren's work as a police officer versus her PI cases, as the first novel did. Lauren is stabbed on the job, and it quickly becomes clear that whoever did it was a cop and they were trying to access files at the precinct.
From there, the case weaves together seamlessly. Redmond is such a good storyteller; her past in law enforcement is clear, as she provides details that makes the story realistic and strong. Riley is a great character. She's still the strong yet flawed woman we came to love in the first book. Grappling with the issues that come with being injured on the job is hard for Lauren, including being more dependent on others. She's as tough and feisty as ever, though, and determined to figure out what happened to her.
As a reader, figuring out what happened to Lauren is interesting and well-done. Redmond's books are so easy-to-read, with bits and pieces pulled together so well. The book isn't full of crazy twists and turns, but it's a really good police procedural that held my interest. And don't worry, there are plenty of good reveals along the way. There are ties to the first book (this book would stand-alone, but I highly recommend reading book one, because there are references to it and because it's really good). We also see more of Lauren's family, including her daughters, her sisters, and her mom. Plus, there's great banter with Reese, who is as enjoyable (and protective of Lauren) as ever.
Overall, this is a great read--compelling, top-notch on its police knowledge, and featuring an excellent, strong female lead character. Highly recommend, and I quite enjoy this series. 4+ stars.
From there, the case weaves together seamlessly. Redmond is such a good storyteller; her past in law enforcement is clear, as she provides details that makes the story realistic and strong. Riley is a great character. She's still the strong yet flawed woman we came to love in the first book. Grappling with the issues that come with being injured on the job is hard for Lauren, including being more dependent on others. She's as tough and feisty as ever, though, and determined to figure out what happened to her.
As a reader, figuring out what happened to Lauren is interesting and well-done. Redmond's books are so easy-to-read, with bits and pieces pulled together so well. The book isn't full of crazy twists and turns, but it's a really good police procedural that held my interest. And don't worry, there are plenty of good reveals along the way. There are ties to the first book (this book would stand-alone, but I highly recommend reading book one, because there are references to it and because it's really good). We also see more of Lauren's family, including her daughters, her sisters, and her mom. Plus, there's great banter with Reese, who is as enjoyable (and protective of Lauren) as ever.
Overall, this is a great read--compelling, top-notch on its police knowledge, and featuring an excellent, strong female lead character. Highly recommend, and I quite enjoy this series. 4+ stars.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Project X (2012) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
Project X is a wild ride fueled by drugs, booze, nudity, strong language, and a mob mentality. It starts off very slow, like every other day at high school (for most of us), and then quickly escalates into a series of events that seem inevitable, like watching dominoes fall.
The story follows three teens: Thomas, Costa, and JB. Costa and JB are on a mission to execute the biggest birthday bash known to man for their best friend Thomas. Their mission? To hopefully change their reputations as high school losers. Of these three, Costa is the only one whose real life name is not the same as his character. Many of the characters in this film used their real names, much to my surprise.
When I first read the film’s synopsis, the following phrase was included: “Project X is a warning to teens, parents and law enforcement.” Naturally, I assumed the film was going to be a documentary laced with lessons for the viewers. While I can’t say more without giving away what happens, I was surprised — and that’s saying something.
Nima Nourizadeh showcases his skills on the silver screen for the first time in a non-documentary capacity, though the film is very documentary-esque. I have to give him two thumbs up for creating a very funny, visually appealing, and emotionally charged film.
The best part for me was the comedy, which I’m sure resonated with younger viewers more, but was hilarious none-the-less. It’s a triumph for true laugh-out-loud film-making.
My only criticism comes from a scene near the end, which seems completely implausible given the realistic nature of the film. This particular scene felt very out of place. At the risk of ruining the moment for you, I will simply say that the drug dealer really lights up the scene, albeit
in a very unlikely manner.
I would call this underdog film an unexpected win.
The story follows three teens: Thomas, Costa, and JB. Costa and JB are on a mission to execute the biggest birthday bash known to man for their best friend Thomas. Their mission? To hopefully change their reputations as high school losers. Of these three, Costa is the only one whose real life name is not the same as his character. Many of the characters in this film used their real names, much to my surprise.
When I first read the film’s synopsis, the following phrase was included: “Project X is a warning to teens, parents and law enforcement.” Naturally, I assumed the film was going to be a documentary laced with lessons for the viewers. While I can’t say more without giving away what happens, I was surprised — and that’s saying something.
Nima Nourizadeh showcases his skills on the silver screen for the first time in a non-documentary capacity, though the film is very documentary-esque. I have to give him two thumbs up for creating a very funny, visually appealing, and emotionally charged film.
The best part for me was the comedy, which I’m sure resonated with younger viewers more, but was hilarious none-the-less. It’s a triumph for true laugh-out-loud film-making.
My only criticism comes from a scene near the end, which seems completely implausible given the realistic nature of the film. This particular scene felt very out of place. At the risk of ruining the moment for you, I will simply say that the drug dealer really lights up the scene, albeit
in a very unlikely manner.
I would call this underdog film an unexpected win.
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Sarah (7800 KP) rated Richard Jewell (2019) in Movies
Nov 7, 2020
An interesting watch
Richard Jewell follows the story of a security guard at the 1996 Olympics who saves many lives after discovering a bomb, yet later finds himself as the main suspect in the ensuing FBI investigation.
This is yet another true story I know nothing about, so for me I found this to be quite an interesting watch to discover what happened. To be honest I was almost in disbelief at times to see how Richard was treated by law enforcement and whilst I know some artistic license is always used, it’s still crazy what they did to him! The story is fascinating, although I do think the film drags this out a bit at a run time of well over 2 hours.
That said, there are some good performances in this namely from Paul Walter Hauser (who was great in I, Tonya too), Sam Rockwell and Kathy Bates. The relationship between Richard and Rockwell’s character Watson is particularly heartwarming and provides a lot of the funnier aspects of the film and actually proves to be the best thing about this. Sadly there are some who have fared less well - Jon Hamm and Olivia Wilde’s seem like your typical cliched FBI and reported characters respectively, and while they both put in good performances, the characters let them down.
What confused me the most about this film was the tone. It felt like it should be a rather tense suspense filled drama (similar to say Patriots Day) but instead it felt too happy or lighthearted to be serious, which considering the subject matter is rather odd. And I think this impacted on how much I liked this. It also didn’t help that they completely gloss over who the real bomber actually was right at the end, and this felt rather abrupt and frustrating considering the length of time the film spends showing them investigating Richard! Overall this is an enjoyable interesting film but falls short of being anything spectacular.
This is yet another true story I know nothing about, so for me I found this to be quite an interesting watch to discover what happened. To be honest I was almost in disbelief at times to see how Richard was treated by law enforcement and whilst I know some artistic license is always used, it’s still crazy what they did to him! The story is fascinating, although I do think the film drags this out a bit at a run time of well over 2 hours.
That said, there are some good performances in this namely from Paul Walter Hauser (who was great in I, Tonya too), Sam Rockwell and Kathy Bates. The relationship between Richard and Rockwell’s character Watson is particularly heartwarming and provides a lot of the funnier aspects of the film and actually proves to be the best thing about this. Sadly there are some who have fared less well - Jon Hamm and Olivia Wilde’s seem like your typical cliched FBI and reported characters respectively, and while they both put in good performances, the characters let them down.
What confused me the most about this film was the tone. It felt like it should be a rather tense suspense filled drama (similar to say Patriots Day) but instead it felt too happy or lighthearted to be serious, which considering the subject matter is rather odd. And I think this impacted on how much I liked this. It also didn’t help that they completely gloss over who the real bomber actually was right at the end, and this felt rather abrupt and frustrating considering the length of time the film spends showing them investigating Richard! Overall this is an enjoyable interesting film but falls short of being anything spectacular.
Becs (244 KP) rated What a Wicked Web We Weave in Books
Oct 2, 2019
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, New-Adult
Type: Stand-alone
Audience/ Reading Level: 18+
Interests: Murder, Fraud, Law Enforcement, Sexual Assault, Family.
Point of View: Honestly, I’m not sure because the views changed all the time.
Promise: What a Wicked Web We Weave is a novel full of mystery, intrigue, murder, revenge, fraud and betrayal amongst many other things. It has several twists and turns as you get enthralled into each chapter and it will leave the reader in suspense and at the edge of their seat, right up to the end.
Insights: I really was hoping to love this little book. But I just couldn’t get over how much the author blew over certain controversial topics and how he wrote this novel. The story was there, there was background on not only the characters but also the story. But I won’t be reading this book again because it wasn’t as enjoyable as I thought it would be. There was also a massive amount of grammatical errors that took away from the surrounding story. Finally, the plot was not the greatest. Two out of five stars.
Can we talk about how the author thought writing a sexual assault scene and then blowing it off like it meant nothing was okay? Also, can we talk about the fact that the victims brother and his lover thought it was alright to go back to the assailant’s room and assualt him in return? I do not take lightly to sexual assualt and this just really put me off on the rest of the story.
Favorite Quotes: “Tony Lodge eat your heart out.”
“‘It’s going to be a long night,’ Tony thoight. ‘Come to Tony you asshole.'”
What will you gain?: An interesting story that is not the greatest read.
Aesthetics: I was intrigued by the synopsis when I first requested this. But I’m majorly disappointed with the way the author set up this novel.
Type: Stand-alone
Audience/ Reading Level: 18+
Interests: Murder, Fraud, Law Enforcement, Sexual Assault, Family.
Point of View: Honestly, I’m not sure because the views changed all the time.
Promise: What a Wicked Web We Weave is a novel full of mystery, intrigue, murder, revenge, fraud and betrayal amongst many other things. It has several twists and turns as you get enthralled into each chapter and it will leave the reader in suspense and at the edge of their seat, right up to the end.
Insights: I really was hoping to love this little book. But I just couldn’t get over how much the author blew over certain controversial topics and how he wrote this novel. The story was there, there was background on not only the characters but also the story. But I won’t be reading this book again because it wasn’t as enjoyable as I thought it would be. There was also a massive amount of grammatical errors that took away from the surrounding story. Finally, the plot was not the greatest. Two out of five stars.
Can we talk about how the author thought writing a sexual assault scene and then blowing it off like it meant nothing was okay? Also, can we talk about the fact that the victims brother and his lover thought it was alright to go back to the assailant’s room and assualt him in return? I do not take lightly to sexual assualt and this just really put me off on the rest of the story.
Favorite Quotes: “Tony Lodge eat your heart out.”
“‘It’s going to be a long night,’ Tony thoight. ‘Come to Tony you asshole.'”
What will you gain?: An interesting story that is not the greatest read.
Aesthetics: I was intrigued by the synopsis when I first requested this. But I’m majorly disappointed with the way the author set up this novel.
The Suspect: An Olympic Bombing, the FBI, the Media, and Richard Jewell, the Man Caught in the Middle
Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen
8.0
Rate It
Book
The masterful true-crime account of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Park bombing that captured the...
Jane Won't Quit
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I’ll protect her—even if she hates me for it… until the day she actually needs saving. ...
Romantic Suspense Police Procedural Crime Mystery