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Whirlwind (Southern Spirits #8)
8.0
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Dying sucks, but the afterlife is one hot place to be. Stefan wasn’t physically perfect in...
MM Paranormal Romance
Jean-Pierre Gorin recommended The Pornographer (1999) in Movies (curated)
Dark Encounters Box Set
8.0
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Dominate Me Be brave, you might just get what you crave… Elizabeth Conner has secretly wanted...
MF MM Erotica BDSM Romance Contemporary
Dining with the Famous and Infamous
Book
Dining with the Famous and Infamous is an entertaining journey into the gastronomic peccadilloes of...
Louise (64 KP) rated Bitch Planet: Extraordinary Machine: Volume 1 in Books
Jul 2, 2018
I received this copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
This a bind up of the first 5 comics in the series
First off I am not gonna lie, this wasn’t as good as I anticipated but does get better throughout. I really didn’t like the retro artwork that was going on, I felt that the artwork needed to be more sombre for this storyline. There is a lot of nudity in this book, like constantly and I really don’t think it was that necessary. I am not a prude but there was literally, tits, ass and vagina’s on every page
This graphic novel deals with several topics such as feminism, oppression, racism and voyeurism (lot’s of ism’s I know) so this book is not going to be for everyone. I liked the fact that not every women in this book had a bikini body, there were characters such as Penny that were bigger ladies and proud of it. There was also background information to why these women were on Bitch Planet, which helped with character development. The important message that is coming across in this graphic novel is that all women should be themselves and not to give a damn about other people’s opinions.I think the storyline is getting better as you get towards the end of this bind up and would be definitely interested in reading more
I had trouble with the layout as provided to me via Netgalley, it took the experience away from me and I would probably enjoyed it more in a physical format.
Overall I gave this 3 out of 5 stars.
This a bind up of the first 5 comics in the series
First off I am not gonna lie, this wasn’t as good as I anticipated but does get better throughout. I really didn’t like the retro artwork that was going on, I felt that the artwork needed to be more sombre for this storyline. There is a lot of nudity in this book, like constantly and I really don’t think it was that necessary. I am not a prude but there was literally, tits, ass and vagina’s on every page
This graphic novel deals with several topics such as feminism, oppression, racism and voyeurism (lot’s of ism’s I know) so this book is not going to be for everyone. I liked the fact that not every women in this book had a bikini body, there were characters such as Penny that were bigger ladies and proud of it. There was also background information to why these women were on Bitch Planet, which helped with character development. The important message that is coming across in this graphic novel is that all women should be themselves and not to give a damn about other people’s opinions.I think the storyline is getting better as you get towards the end of this bind up and would be definitely interested in reading more
I had trouble with the layout as provided to me via Netgalley, it took the experience away from me and I would probably enjoyed it more in a physical format.
Overall I gave this 3 out of 5 stars.
Mayhawke (97 KP) rated Elevator Pitch in Books
Jun 28, 2019
A nice return to U.S. crime fiction
Crime fiction is my thing. It's what I read most of, most of the time.
Over a decade ago I stopped reading crime fiction from the U.S. because I found what seemed to be a an unpleasant dwelling on the suffering of victims; a voyeurism which I found uncomfortable, and highly unpleasant. It was as though American crime writers were incapable of exploring the darkness of humanity, or giving clarity to events without relishing the pain and terror that must have been experienced by those on the receiving end of them.
Of course this was never true of all U.S. crime fiction, but I couldn't be asked to keep searching for the other kind. It was easier to just stay away from it all.
So, this is the first American crime novel I have read in nearly fifteen years.
What a joy it was. Barclay sets out a gripping thriller, an excellently plotted story which will educate you just a bit more than is comfortable on the ease of hacking lift controls in the technical age, whilst carefully leading you up and down the garden path a couple of times. The reading style is comfortable, the exposition is well paced. Eventually you arrive at a satisfying, and prompt conclusion. Barclay avoids the temptation to draw out the end like a cheerleader pulling gum, something that only works in Golden Era crime, and I always feel is out of place in otherwise fast-paced books of a more recent age.
Against this the characters have a slightly superficial feel, as though they have only been given the complexity they need for the book, and the denouement was not a huge surprise, though it was batted back and forth between two potential subjects nicely. But these really are minor complaints I really enjoyed this book and I will definitely be going back and reading some more of Linwood's books on the basis of this one.
Over a decade ago I stopped reading crime fiction from the U.S. because I found what seemed to be a an unpleasant dwelling on the suffering of victims; a voyeurism which I found uncomfortable, and highly unpleasant. It was as though American crime writers were incapable of exploring the darkness of humanity, or giving clarity to events without relishing the pain and terror that must have been experienced by those on the receiving end of them.
Of course this was never true of all U.S. crime fiction, but I couldn't be asked to keep searching for the other kind. It was easier to just stay away from it all.
So, this is the first American crime novel I have read in nearly fifteen years.
What a joy it was. Barclay sets out a gripping thriller, an excellently plotted story which will educate you just a bit more than is comfortable on the ease of hacking lift controls in the technical age, whilst carefully leading you up and down the garden path a couple of times. The reading style is comfortable, the exposition is well paced. Eventually you arrive at a satisfying, and prompt conclusion. Barclay avoids the temptation to draw out the end like a cheerleader pulling gum, something that only works in Golden Era crime, and I always feel is out of place in otherwise fast-paced books of a more recent age.
Against this the characters have a slightly superficial feel, as though they have only been given the complexity they need for the book, and the denouement was not a huge surprise, though it was batted back and forth between two potential subjects nicely. But these really are minor complaints I really enjoyed this book and I will definitely be going back and reading some more of Linwood's books on the basis of this one.
Micah's Calling (All The King's Men #3)
9.0
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Author’s Note: This is a novella supplement to the All the King’s Men series. It is highly...
Erotica BDSM Paranormal Romance Novella
Ross (3284 KP) rated Black Mirror - Season 2 in TV
Jan 15, 2018
Series 2 includes 4 more episodes (three plus a Christmas special) of the cult Charlie Brooker series exploring the use of technology and extrapolating it to show where society could be headed.
We explore the use of our online personalities to recreate ourselves after we die (though this quickly became more about robots than the differences in our personalities between online and the real world so for me a trick missed to an extent).
We see a post-apocalyptic world where one woman wakes up to be haunted by people filming her on mobile phones while she runs from psychopaths trying to kill her. This is a look at how obsessed the world is with filming and documenting everything, even unpleasant events happening to other people, and voyeurism as a whole. There is a massive twist at the end which makes what was a jarring, inconsistent episode (as in doesn't fit in with the rest of the series) into an exceptional look at an aspect of the world (spoiler avoided).
I found the Waldo episode to be incredibly irritating. As if a rude, cartoonish character with tiny hands could ever really be taken seriously in the world of politics?! Waldo shows an echo of Ali G's rise to fame but takes it to the next level. While I don't think we are meant to actually find Waldo funny, I found him very annoying and a step too far. Weirdly he reminded me of the banter comedy in Nathan Barley (it turns out this story was originally written for Nathan Barley).
The Christmas special was possibly my favourite of the episodes, Rafe Spall and Jon Hamm (Don Draper) living in awkward circumstances in a cabin. We are led to believe they are working at a remote mining operation or some such and finally start to bond over Christmas dinner and open up. They share stories about their lives before they moved, all three showing the benefits and perils of the technology whereby people can stream their lives to others (and get real-time dating advice) but can also block others from their lives (whereby they are pixelated to you and vice versa). Parts of this story were truly harrowing, how a happy relationship could quickly turn sour and the technology mean years of upset that could be avoided.
We explore the use of our online personalities to recreate ourselves after we die (though this quickly became more about robots than the differences in our personalities between online and the real world so for me a trick missed to an extent).
We see a post-apocalyptic world where one woman wakes up to be haunted by people filming her on mobile phones while she runs from psychopaths trying to kill her. This is a look at how obsessed the world is with filming and documenting everything, even unpleasant events happening to other people, and voyeurism as a whole. There is a massive twist at the end which makes what was a jarring, inconsistent episode (as in doesn't fit in with the rest of the series) into an exceptional look at an aspect of the world (spoiler avoided).
I found the Waldo episode to be incredibly irritating. As if a rude, cartoonish character with tiny hands could ever really be taken seriously in the world of politics?! Waldo shows an echo of Ali G's rise to fame but takes it to the next level. While I don't think we are meant to actually find Waldo funny, I found him very annoying and a step too far. Weirdly he reminded me of the banter comedy in Nathan Barley (it turns out this story was originally written for Nathan Barley).
The Christmas special was possibly my favourite of the episodes, Rafe Spall and Jon Hamm (Don Draper) living in awkward circumstances in a cabin. We are led to believe they are working at a remote mining operation or some such and finally start to bond over Christmas dinner and open up. They share stories about their lives before they moved, all three showing the benefits and perils of the technology whereby people can stream their lives to others (and get real-time dating advice) but can also block others from their lives (whereby they are pixelated to you and vice versa). Parts of this story were truly harrowing, how a happy relationship could quickly turn sour and the technology mean years of upset that could be avoided.
BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Rear Window (1954) in Movies
May 14, 2020
Perfect Match of Director and Material
1954's REAR WINDOW is my favorite of all of the Alfred Hitchock films. So when it came time to expose my college-aged children to the works of "the Master of Suspense", it was a "no-brainer" as to which film it would be.
And...they loved it.
Starring "everyman" Jimmy Stewart and the always fabulous Grace Kelly, REAR WINDOW tells the tale of photographer L.B. Jefferies (Stewart) who is laid up in his New York apartment with a broken leg. His only means of entertainment is looking out of the "rear window" of his apartment into the courtyard - and the other apartments (and the people) therein.
This is a treatise on voyeurism and the pairing of this material with a master of film like Hitchcock is a marriage made in heaven. He sets up most of the movie so you are viewing the events as though you are Jefferies - confined to his apartment. Each apartment around the courtyard are their own little viewing boxes. He does a neat, subtle trick in this film. When he pans counter-clockwise, he is just browsing the apartments (like channel surfing on TV). When he pans clockwise - or goes straight to an apartment - he is focusing on that place/story. More often than not, the scenes in the apartments that Jefferies is looking at is mirroring what is going on in the relationship between Stewart and Kelly - sometimes with a sinister undertone. As always, Hitchcock ratchets up the suspense in a way only he can - focusing on a mundane item/thing until it becomes malevolent. This could have easily been a boring/static film, but in Hitchcock's capable hands, there is movement aplenty and the film flows beautifully.
As for the performances, Stewart has never been better as the audience stand-in/everyman who goes from charming scamp just snatching peeks of his neighbors to "peeping-tom" voyeur who is intruding in the private lives of his fellow courtyard denizens. Grace Kelly is just radiant in the way Hitchcock photographs her and in the way that all-time great costumer Edith Head dresses her. She is perfectly made-up and costumed to make her "the most beautiful woman in the world". But...what caught me in this viewing was how good of an acting job she does in this film. In previous viewings I was swept up in the look and feel of the actress. This time, I was taken in by the character and she became the one in this film I was rooting for. Well...either Grace Kelly or the great character actress Thelma Ritter as insurance nurse (and willing accomplice) Stella. She almost steals the movie from the two leads...almost.
All of the elements at play in this film work - acting, costuming, scenic design, cinematography and script - all wrapped up by a Master Director at the top of his game.
If you only watch one Alfred Hitchock film, make it REAR WINDOW. You'll be glad you did.
Letter Grade: A+
10 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
And...they loved it.
Starring "everyman" Jimmy Stewart and the always fabulous Grace Kelly, REAR WINDOW tells the tale of photographer L.B. Jefferies (Stewart) who is laid up in his New York apartment with a broken leg. His only means of entertainment is looking out of the "rear window" of his apartment into the courtyard - and the other apartments (and the people) therein.
This is a treatise on voyeurism and the pairing of this material with a master of film like Hitchcock is a marriage made in heaven. He sets up most of the movie so you are viewing the events as though you are Jefferies - confined to his apartment. Each apartment around the courtyard are their own little viewing boxes. He does a neat, subtle trick in this film. When he pans counter-clockwise, he is just browsing the apartments (like channel surfing on TV). When he pans clockwise - or goes straight to an apartment - he is focusing on that place/story. More often than not, the scenes in the apartments that Jefferies is looking at is mirroring what is going on in the relationship between Stewart and Kelly - sometimes with a sinister undertone. As always, Hitchcock ratchets up the suspense in a way only he can - focusing on a mundane item/thing until it becomes malevolent. This could have easily been a boring/static film, but in Hitchcock's capable hands, there is movement aplenty and the film flows beautifully.
As for the performances, Stewart has never been better as the audience stand-in/everyman who goes from charming scamp just snatching peeks of his neighbors to "peeping-tom" voyeur who is intruding in the private lives of his fellow courtyard denizens. Grace Kelly is just radiant in the way Hitchcock photographs her and in the way that all-time great costumer Edith Head dresses her. She is perfectly made-up and costumed to make her "the most beautiful woman in the world". But...what caught me in this viewing was how good of an acting job she does in this film. In previous viewings I was swept up in the look and feel of the actress. This time, I was taken in by the character and she became the one in this film I was rooting for. Well...either Grace Kelly or the great character actress Thelma Ritter as insurance nurse (and willing accomplice) Stella. She almost steals the movie from the two leads...almost.
All of the elements at play in this film work - acting, costuming, scenic design, cinematography and script - all wrapped up by a Master Director at the top of his game.
If you only watch one Alfred Hitchock film, make it REAR WINDOW. You'll be glad you did.
Letter Grade: A+
10 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)