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Morgan Sheppard (1037 KP) created a post
Oct 28, 2025
David McK (3932 KP) rated Zulu (1964) in Movies
Nov 9, 2025 (Updated Apr 19, 2026)
1964 retelling of the Defence of Rorke's Drift, which is one of the most famous last-stands in military history, and where a small force of British redcoats holds off their vastly numerically superior (albeit armed with less sophisticated weaponry) Zulu force.
The engagement itself takes place shortly (on the same day as) after the Battle of Iswandhlana, with the defence taking place on 22-23 January 1879, and saw the most number of Victoria Crosses awarded to the survivors of an battle - perhaps in an attempt to deflect attention from their earlier defeat?
The engagement itself takes place shortly (on the same day as) after the Battle of Iswandhlana, with the defence taking place on 22-23 January 1879, and saw the most number of Victoria Crosses awarded to the survivors of an battle - perhaps in an attempt to deflect attention from their earlier defeat?
Morgan Sheppard (1037 KP) created a post
Dec 4, 2025
Morgan Sheppard (1037 KP) created a post
Oct 28, 2026
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Never Never in Books
Sep 6, 2017
Fantastic retelling of Peter Pan from Hook's point of view
Where do I start with this one? I had ups and downs with this book. It’s a retelling of Peter Pan, from Captain Hook’s viewpoint. And it reveals that James Hook was actually a boy taken to Neverland who thought it was going to be temporary, but then Pan refused to take him home.
I LOVE that it showed Hook as a sympathetic character. And in my interpretation, Hook is still that lonely 13-year-old boy that Pan stole, artificially aged through the tricks of Neverland. Being a 13-year-old boy explains the hysterical fear of the crocodile, and the blind rages at Pan. He’s still a child, without the emotional maturity of a man, and that explains a lot of his actions in the original Disney movie. (Which is incorporated in the last part of the book.)
I was disappointed in the ending of the book. Not in the writing – the writing was fantastic – but in the actual events. I wanted a different ending. (I’m trying not to spoil too much!)
And Hook’s romance – well. It was unexpected, but it made sense, and I enjoyed it. For a while it was the only pure thing he had, but even that was spoiled by Pan. Hook really just couldn’t catch a break.
It’ll be interesting to see how this compares to the other Hook retellings out there, which I’m planning to read as well – Peter Pan is one of my husband’s favorite fairy tales, and I love seeing fairy tales from the villain’s point of view.
To sum up: A solid retelling from Captain’s Hook point of view – the ending was not quite what I wanted, but villain’s stories almost never end happily for the villain, I suppose. Definitely worth the read.
You can find all of my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
I LOVE that it showed Hook as a sympathetic character. And in my interpretation, Hook is still that lonely 13-year-old boy that Pan stole, artificially aged through the tricks of Neverland. Being a 13-year-old boy explains the hysterical fear of the crocodile, and the blind rages at Pan. He’s still a child, without the emotional maturity of a man, and that explains a lot of his actions in the original Disney movie. (Which is incorporated in the last part of the book.)
I was disappointed in the ending of the book. Not in the writing – the writing was fantastic – but in the actual events. I wanted a different ending. (I’m trying not to spoil too much!)
And Hook’s romance – well. It was unexpected, but it made sense, and I enjoyed it. For a while it was the only pure thing he had, but even that was spoiled by Pan. Hook really just couldn’t catch a break.
It’ll be interesting to see how this compares to the other Hook retellings out there, which I’m planning to read as well – Peter Pan is one of my husband’s favorite fairy tales, and I love seeing fairy tales from the villain’s point of view.
To sum up: A solid retelling from Captain’s Hook point of view – the ending was not quite what I wanted, but villain’s stories almost never end happily for the villain, I suppose. Definitely worth the read.
You can find all of my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
Kyera (8 KP) rated Beheld (Kendra Chronicles, #4) in Books
Feb 1, 2018
Beheld by Alex Flinn is the fifth book in the Kendra Chronicles. Readers were first introduced to the witch in Flinns Beauty and the Beast retelling, Beastly. Since then she has been involved in a number of other famous fairy tales like Cinderella and Rapunzel. In this book, readers follow Kendras life as she finds the love of her life, loses him and repeats the cycle. Each time she encounters him, readers are treated to a short retelling. The first is Little Red Riding Hood, which is set in Salem, Ma during the witch trials. The second is Rumplestiltskin, which is set is Bavaria and features a Prince. The third is East of the Sun and West of the Moon, which is set primarily in Britain during the Second World War. The final tale is the Ugly Duckling, which is in modern day Miami.
My least favourite aspect of the book was actually the interludes linking each story together, or Kendras tale of trying to find her love. Each retelling would have been an interesting (if short) read, even if she were not a character and the magic was introduced in another fashion. Personally, I felt that these tales would have been better served as novellas because the thread linking them felt forced. The stories themselves felt rushed at times, perhaps because all four had to be combined into one cohesive story and if they were more detailed than the novel would be much too long.
The characters were likable and the world was believable, but neither was particularly developed. I wish that the author had taken the time to delve more deeply into the worlds and build an entrancing narrative. Overall, the book was enjoyable but there were times that it was slow and I had to force myself to pick it back up to continue.
I would recommend this novel, and the series as a whole, to young adult/teen readers who enjoy magic and fantasy in their books, as well as fairytale retellings.
My least favourite aspect of the book was actually the interludes linking each story together, or Kendras tale of trying to find her love. Each retelling would have been an interesting (if short) read, even if she were not a character and the magic was introduced in another fashion. Personally, I felt that these tales would have been better served as novellas because the thread linking them felt forced. The stories themselves felt rushed at times, perhaps because all four had to be combined into one cohesive story and if they were more detailed than the novel would be much too long.
The characters were likable and the world was believable, but neither was particularly developed. I wish that the author had taken the time to delve more deeply into the worlds and build an entrancing narrative. Overall, the book was enjoyable but there were times that it was slow and I had to force myself to pick it back up to continue.
I would recommend this novel, and the series as a whole, to young adult/teen readers who enjoy magic and fantasy in their books, as well as fairytale retellings.
Caitlin Ann Cherniak (85 KP) rated Pete's Dragon (2016) in Movies
Oct 4, 2018
CGI (2 more)
Acting choice
Interesting twist to a retelling
Plot? Dragon being real or save the environment? (2 more)
Who's the bad guy?
Where was Pete the whole dang time?
Letterboxd review: https://letterboxd.com/caitcher/film/petes-dragon-2016/
First impressions video:
When I first saw this movie two years ago, I thought it was okay at best. There were plenty of good things about it, but there are the downsides that kinda take over.
The first thing I noticed was the plot. I haven't seen the original movie, but considering this was Disney in the 70's, it looked charming as Disney should. But because this is a live-action retelling, we can't have that luxury. I didn't ask for Pete's Dragon to do much. I just asked for it to be a good movie. However, throughout the entire time, I think this movie didn't know what it wanted to be about either. Did it wanna be the ripoff of a 90's "save the environment" flick or did it actually wanna be like the original involving Pete's actual existence? Hence why I called this movie a pancake to my family after coming home from seeing it. It constantly flips on the cooking pan, and it won't stop.
But what are the good things after my bad things "rant." First of all, I really liked how Pete got along with the main family, especially the daughter. It was an adorable relationship and all of the actors'...well, acting was the way it should've been. The soundtrack was also pretty decent, despite the fact that this retelling was not a musical. Lastly, the CGI on Pete actually made him look adorable and scary at the same time considering the tone of the film, which worked in its favor.
If you want more details, feel free to click on my other review links at the top of this review.
First impressions video:
When I first saw this movie two years ago, I thought it was okay at best. There were plenty of good things about it, but there are the downsides that kinda take over.
The first thing I noticed was the plot. I haven't seen the original movie, but considering this was Disney in the 70's, it looked charming as Disney should. But because this is a live-action retelling, we can't have that luxury. I didn't ask for Pete's Dragon to do much. I just asked for it to be a good movie. However, throughout the entire time, I think this movie didn't know what it wanted to be about either. Did it wanna be the ripoff of a 90's "save the environment" flick or did it actually wanna be like the original involving Pete's actual existence? Hence why I called this movie a pancake to my family after coming home from seeing it. It constantly flips on the cooking pan, and it won't stop.
But what are the good things after my bad things "rant." First of all, I really liked how Pete got along with the main family, especially the daughter. It was an adorable relationship and all of the actors'...well, acting was the way it should've been. The soundtrack was also pretty decent, despite the fact that this retelling was not a musical. Lastly, the CGI on Pete actually made him look adorable and scary at the same time considering the tone of the film, which worked in its favor.
If you want more details, feel free to click on my other review links at the top of this review.
David McK (3932 KP) rated King's Man (The Outlaw Chronicles, #3) in Books
Jan 30, 2019
I first heard of/read Angus Donald about 2, maybe 3, years ago, when I read his novel <i>Outlaw</i> - a visceral retelling of the Robin Hood legend - and which proved to be one of the best 'new' books I read that year.
I also read the sequel to <i>Outlaw</i>, <i>Holy Warror</i> - in which Robin and his men travel to the Holy Land to fight in what would become known as the Third Crusade - but found it was not quite as good as its predecessor.
The third novel in the series - <i>King's Man</i> - is a return to form. Set back in England and, like the previous two novels, presented as the elderly Alan Dale retelling the story of his younger days, this novel takes the struggle between Richard the Lionheart and his brother Prince John for the throne as its bedrock. With Richard imprisoned on his return journey home from the Holy Land - a historical fact also used as the basis for the famous novel/film <i>Ivanhoe</i> - the throne of England is left vulnerable. Most of the Robin Hood legends acknowledge this fact; in most of them Robin remains loyal to King Richard, with this novel no exception. As a partial result, Robin is once again outlawed and once again takes up his old ways ...
Looking forward to the next installment!
I also read the sequel to <i>Outlaw</i>, <i>Holy Warror</i> - in which Robin and his men travel to the Holy Land to fight in what would become known as the Third Crusade - but found it was not quite as good as its predecessor.
The third novel in the series - <i>King's Man</i> - is a return to form. Set back in England and, like the previous two novels, presented as the elderly Alan Dale retelling the story of his younger days, this novel takes the struggle between Richard the Lionheart and his brother Prince John for the throne as its bedrock. With Richard imprisoned on his return journey home from the Holy Land - a historical fact also used as the basis for the famous novel/film <i>Ivanhoe</i> - the throne of England is left vulnerable. Most of the Robin Hood legends acknowledge this fact; in most of them Robin remains loyal to King Richard, with this novel no exception. As a partial result, Robin is once again outlawed and once again takes up his old ways ...
Looking forward to the next installment!
Heart of a Hunter (End of Ever After #5)
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The last installment of the End of Ever After fairy tale retelling series! Daimyon was raised...
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The Prince’s Prisoner (Feared Fables #2)
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A dark fae prince. A stolen human girl. And an unwanted marriage. Not all beasts can be...
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