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Ross (3284 KP) rated Death March (Euphoria Online Book 1) in Books

Nov 19, 2018

Death March (Euphoria Online Book 1)

Phil Tucker | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Thrilling, compelling LitRPG

I am a massive fan of Phil Tucker's Chronicles of the Black Gate series and was intrigued at this venture, largely funded by kickstarter.
While the term "LitRPG" isn't necessarily something that would attract me (I've read and mostly enjoyed Ready Player One but the idea of people escaping the real world to enter an online one doesn't seem to justify a whole sub-genre to my mind).
The book sees Chris struggling to make ends meet teaching disinterested kids while he fights his brother's death sentence. A former compulsive gamer, given the chance to enter the world of Euphoria, normally too expensive for him to consider, he throws himself into the game with gusto. By playing on the hardest level (Death March), he is risking his own life as he cannot re-spawn in the game and death will mean actual death for him. The prize on offer for this risk, if he can survive 6 months game-time (the equivalent of a weekend in the real world), is a cash sum plus the chance to request anything at all of the AI running the government - including a pardon for his brother.
Chris finds himself in a ruined medieval setting in the game, struggling to earn points to level up and make his character stronger. This levelling up and earning/spending XP is a main part of the book. While not a RPG fan myself, I loved this aspect as it meant he learned new skills and abilities throughout the book with good reason (so no sudden new strengths here!) and he had to choose what kind of character he wanted to become.
The action sequences are sublimely written and narrated and the whole book is so immersive. Sadly, it is also really short so was over in no time, but with 2 more books already available I will get cracking on those.
Heartily recommend to anyone who is a fan of fantasy, gaming/RPG or anyone looking for some real escapism.

Kudos

Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Sicario (2015) in Movies

Aug 6, 2019

Sicario (2015)

2015 | Action, Drama, Mystery

8.0

(22 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

Those expecting Sicario to be a high action film will be disappointed. Instead what they will find is a slow burn suspenseful drama with fantastic acting and a more realistic take on the drug war than Hollywood traditionally likes to show us.

Emily Blunt delivers another strong acting performance as a “girl scout” FBI agent who raids drug houses in Arizona. She is somewhat of a “Bad Ass” among her crew, as her life has become dedicated to the job and she believes in the cause. So when Josh Brolin comes in as the head of a “spook” CIA taskforce and recruits blunt to make some “noise” and go after the head of Mexican drug cartel, she jumps at the chance to stop the men responsible for the drug houses and make a real difference. The only problem is that as the low man on the taskforce, she is not told much which frustrates her when things start to not appear by the book.

To make things worse, Benicio Del Toro is a suspicious part of Brolin’s taskforce who doesn’t seem to fit into the puzzle. It is through Del Toro that we learn the truth about the operation and the real meaning of the word Sicario. Del Toro’s performance burns with silent chaos as you just know he is the “coolest guy” in the room, both in style and nerves. He is someone who is not to be trifled with as an ally or an enemy but still maintains a sincerity towards Blunt and her idealism. This is one of his best performances in years.

Ultimately Sicario is a slow paced suspenseful action film that feels real. Even though the pacing is slow, at no point did the film drag as you are constantly wondering what is really going on just like the strong and refreshing female lead in an action film like this.