Search
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2656 KP) rated Racing the Light in Books
Jun 17, 2023
Elvis Cole is in a Race to Find a Missing Man
PI Elvis Cole’s latest client is a mother who insists that her son, Josh, is missing. She sounds like a conspiracy nut, and it doesn’t help that Josh hosts a podcast about aliens and other out there topics. But Elvis gives himself a day to figure out what he thinks of the case, and in that time he realizes that someone dangerous is very interested in where Josh is. Can Elvis find him in time?
As usual, this book was a mixed bag for me. The case was interesting, although some of the events were entirely predictable to anyone who has read this series on a regular basis. While I do like Elvis and his partner, Joe Pike, I still find Joe to be a rather thin character. The new characters are also definitely on the thin side, and many of them are annoying. In fact, at times the plot seemed to be based on the characters doing the absolutely stupidest things they could do and Elvis trying to save them. There’s also quite a bit of adult content in this book, more so than I really thought it needed. There are lots of point of view changes, but I never had a hard time with them since they were clearly labeled and happened at chapter breaks. Fans will be interested in the sub-plot here. There are things I enjoyed, but once again, this is an average entry in an average series.
As usual, this book was a mixed bag for me. The case was interesting, although some of the events were entirely predictable to anyone who has read this series on a regular basis. While I do like Elvis and his partner, Joe Pike, I still find Joe to be a rather thin character. The new characters are also definitely on the thin side, and many of them are annoying. In fact, at times the plot seemed to be based on the characters doing the absolutely stupidest things they could do and Elvis trying to save them. There’s also quite a bit of adult content in this book, more so than I really thought it needed. There are lots of point of view changes, but I never had a hard time with them since they were clearly labeled and happened at chapter breaks. Fans will be interested in the sub-plot here. There are things I enjoyed, but once again, this is an average entry in an average series.
The John Tradescants: Gardeners to the Rose and Lily Queen
Book
There are few more important figures in the early history of modern gardening than John Tradescant...
LucyB (47 KP) rated Dark Matter in Books
Jul 23, 2017
Mind-bending, fast-pasted, gripping to the end
Every so often, I come across an author who is so different, it blows me away. Blake Crouch is definitely one of those authors! The storyline is so completely 'way out' that I'm amazed he pulled it off, and his style of writing (short to the point of sparse) shouldn't work, but really does!
The story is about Martin, the man who has the perfect life, the perfect wife, a lovely son...but fifteen years ago, gave up his illustrious science career to have a family. Suddenly, he's kidnapped, drugged, and (wait for it), forced into an alternate reality. I can't say anymore without spoiling the plot, but what follows is a frenetic race through alternative realities to get back to the life he once knew, at any cost.
The storyline is impressive, not least because the concept is so complex, yet Crouch handles it with ease. I'd say that this is the author's greatest gift - being able to simplify and abbreviate, without dumbing down. In fact, this book is probably the best example of 'all killer, no filler' that I've ever read.
A formidable book... I'll be looking forward to reading the Wayward Pines series next!
The story is about Martin, the man who has the perfect life, the perfect wife, a lovely son...but fifteen years ago, gave up his illustrious science career to have a family. Suddenly, he's kidnapped, drugged, and (wait for it), forced into an alternate reality. I can't say anymore without spoiling the plot, but what follows is a frenetic race through alternative realities to get back to the life he once knew, at any cost.
The storyline is impressive, not least because the concept is so complex, yet Crouch handles it with ease. I'd say that this is the author's greatest gift - being able to simplify and abbreviate, without dumbing down. In fact, this book is probably the best example of 'all killer, no filler' that I've ever read.
A formidable book... I'll be looking forward to reading the Wayward Pines series next!
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post
Dec 19, 2022
BD
Between Dreams: Difficult Paths and Dangerous Places
Book
Steve Harvey was in the same class at school as Sting in the sixties, on 'the Fringe' with Liam...
The Dartington Bride (Daughters of Devon #2)
Book
1571, and the beautiful, headstrong daughter of a French Count marries the son of the Vice Admiral...
Historical Fiction Devon Elizabethan French Wars of Religion Daughters of Devon Series
The Tudor Queens’ Midwife (The Tudor Queens’ Midwife #1)
Book
In the glamorous, glittering and dangerous court of king Henry VIII and his queen Katherine of...
Historical Fiction The Tudors English Kings and Queens
Awix (3310 KP) rated Creed II (2018) in Movies
Dec 8, 2018 (Updated Dec 8, 2018)
Eighth movie in the Rocky series is well-nigh miraculous, not for being a well-made sports drama (though it is that) but for revisiting some of the characters and events of Rocky IV (the silliest of these films) and still producing a credible, involving story. Donnie Creed wins the world title, but is challenged by Viktor Drago, the son of the man who killed his father umpty-tump years ago. What follows is a classical story of hubris, comeuppance, and redemption, with powerful themes of parental responsibility, legacy, and what it means to have the heart of a fighter. Plus lengthy sequences of beefy men bashing the living daylights out of each other, and the odd training montage too.
Really quite good in every department: the fights are as predictable as ever, but the storytelling really makes you feel them, and you care about the characters so much it doesn't really matter anyway. Carl Weathers must still be off somewhere muttering bitterly to himself about the fact that (one presumes) he's not making any money off these things, but Stallone does his latter-day character actor thing, Jordan carries the film well, and Tessa Thompson makes the most of a slightly underwritten part. Almost certainly the best movie in the filmography of Dolph Lundgren (this is not saying much) or Brigitte Nielson (this is probably saying even less).
Really quite good in every department: the fights are as predictable as ever, but the storytelling really makes you feel them, and you care about the characters so much it doesn't really matter anyway. Carl Weathers must still be off somewhere muttering bitterly to himself about the fact that (one presumes) he's not making any money off these things, but Stallone does his latter-day character actor thing, Jordan carries the film well, and Tessa Thompson makes the most of a slightly underwritten part. Almost certainly the best movie in the filmography of Dolph Lundgren (this is not saying much) or Brigitte Nielson (this is probably saying even less).
Orb Sceptre Throne
Book
The tumult of great powers colliding has passed and the city of Darujhistan and its citizens can at...