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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2440 KP) rated Dogged in Books

Oct 26, 2018  
Dogged
Dogged
Sandy Dengler | 2018 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Joe and Tommy must Doggedly Track Down Another Killer
It starts with the discovery of a naked body in Camelback Mountain. The victim, a female, had been discovered not too far from the hiking path by some early morning hikers. The weirdest part is that all of the bones in her legs and arms had been broken before she died. Phoenix homicide detectives Joe Rodriguez and Tommy Flaherty are assigned to the case, but while they are still tracking down the victim's identity, another body is found. This one has the same broken bones, but it is several months older. Joe is finding himself distracted by his concerns over his new relationship with Bridgid, Tommy's cousin. Can he focus on the case long enough to solve it?

I was very pleasantly surprised earlier this year when I saw this book pop up. This is definitely a book that falls into the traditional part of the mystery spectrum, but it doesn't get much worse than what I teased already. The plot is strong and doesn't try to delve into the mind of the serial killer, just tries to catch the person, and we get a strong mystery as Joe and Tommy work to do that. I did feel the ending was a bit weak since it hit two of my pet peeves, but they were minor overall. The characters are absolutely wonderful, and it was fantastic to see them all again.
  
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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2440 KP) rated The Plot Thickets in Books

Oct 27, 2022 (Updated Oct 27, 2022)  
The Plot Thickets
The Plot Thickets
Julia Henry | 2022 | Mystery
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Fresh Body in the Cemetery
Lilly Jayne has received a suggestion that the Garden Squad look at the historic cemetery because some of the areas have been neglected. When Lilly and Delia head out there one afternoon, they find more problems than they were expecting. Yes, some areas desperately need to be weeded and tended to in other ways. But Lilly also finds more graves than she is expecting to see in the middle of historic family plots. While she isn’t completely sure if she can trust her memory or not, she begins to investigate. When a fresh body turns up above ground near the Jayne family’s crypt, Lilly starts digging deeper. Can she find what happened?

I always love getting to spend time with the Garden Squad. Their friendships are fantastic, and I love the town of Goosebush. The rest of the characters are strong as well. Unfortunately, I felt the pacing was off in this book, especially in the first half. This isn’t anything new for this series, but it felt worse than usual here. There is a good mystery, it just needed a little pruning, and once the action picked up, I was kept guessing until the end. As always, there are some garden tips at the end of the novel. I enjoyed visiting my friends again, and fans will as well, even if the plot could have been stronger.
  
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Ross (3284 KP) rated Gemini Man (2019) in Movies

May 5, 2020  
Gemini Man (2019)
Gemini Man (2019)
2019 | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
7
5.8 (33 Ratings)
Movie Rating Watch
Good action but unsettling CGI
Much like the Justice League film, the CGI distracted me too much to enjoy the film. I don't know whether Will Smith used a body double and his Fresh Prince face was superimposed or if he did it himself (or likely a combination) but it is a little unsettling. Especially so in long frantic action sequences where it just jars and detracts from the action.
Overall a decent film but maybe too ambitious for the technology available.
Although it did amuse me to think about how the film would have been if they had just inserted clips from the Fresh Prince into the film and wrote the script around that.