Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated Murder in Greenwich Village in Books

Mar 10, 2021 (Updated Mar 10, 2021)  
Murder in Greenwich Village
Murder in Greenwich Village
Liz Freeland | 2018 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Murdered Roommate
In the summer of 1913, Louise Faulk is enjoying her new life in New York City until one evening when she and her roommate, Callie, return to their apartment to find Callie’s cousin, Ethel, dead. Ethel had been staying with them for several weeks, but was from out of town and hardly knew anyone. The police focus on someone that Louise knows would never commit murder, so she starts to investigate. But who could have motive to kill Ethel?

The book starts off quickly, but I did feel the pacing was a bit uneven as the story unfolded. There was one thing that I wasn’t satisfied with at the end of the book as well, but only because I disagreed with Louise’s conclusion. Overall, the plot is interesting and held my interest all the way until we reached the logical climax. Louise is a wonderful main character, and I’m very interested to see where the series takes her next. The suspects are strong, and the rest of the cast is interesting. The book was a little darker than I was expecting, more a traditional than the cozies I normally read. As long as you know that going in, you’ll be fine. I will definitely be visiting Louise again. I’m anxious to find out what happens to her next.
  
Billion Dollar Babies by Alice Cooper
Billion Dollar Babies by Alice Cooper
1973 | Rock
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"This is the pinnacle of the 'magic four' line up. I discovered Alice Cooper when he did School's Out: I thought it was great. It was all the bits of glam that I liked. It was theatrical in a comical way. Cooper was an American band that seemed very British - there wasn't a great deal of difference between them and, say, Wizzard to me. I heard School's Out, went down town with my mum and brought two Alice Cooper albums - Love It To Death and Killer for about five shillings each. I got School's Out the next week and loved the theatrics. I really got into Cooper - 'Halo of Flies' etc. It was horror music, way ahead. I laugh when people try to tell me Marilyn Manson is scary: I think 'you weren't around in 71, mate'. Then of course, knowing the albums inside out a year later, out comes Billion Dollar Babies - it has this fantastic opening song 'Hello Hooray' which has this amazing guitar part at the start. And then 'Raped And Freezing' and 'Elected'. There was a really dark psychedelic edge to it. They felt like a band in charge of what they were doing. It was glamorous; it was exotic; it was dangerous. That was the kind of stuff that I liked."

Source
  
...Like Clockwork by Queens Of The Stone Age
...Like Clockwork by Queens Of The Stone Age
2013 | Alternative
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"It’s the first album in two years that I’m totally enthralled and inspired by. I don’t know if it’s because of his [Josh Homme’s] near-death experience - Josh did nearly die on the operating table, during a simple operation that went wrong - but the lyrics are really a massive leap. James [Dean Bradfield, Manics guitarist] and Sean [Moore, drummer] have always loved Queens but I’ve never been a massive fan, then this album really got to me. There’s a track called ‘If I Had A Tail’ that’s almost got an In Utero feel to it. The drums are massive, the lyrics are brilliant: ‘I Appear Missing’ what a title! ‘I Sat By The Ocean’ is a bit like ‘Ocean Spray’, it’s got the same sort of bassline. The first time I heard it absolutely blew me away, the musicianship on it is fucking astounding as well. It makes you feel quite defeated. There’s a desert dryness to it as well - anyone who’s been in hospital will relate to it, it has a bare whiteness to it. It’s forensic. It’s actually a really earthy album, but not earthy like Crosby, Stills and Nash. Earthy like you’re lying there having an out-of-body experience. I’ve struggled over the last two years, I’ve loved loads of songs and records, but there’s been no albums that actually sound like an album - this one does."

Source
  
The Creeper (Brennan and Esposito #2)
The Creeper (Brennan and Esposito #2)
Tania Carver | 2010 | Mystery, Thriller
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
113 of 260
Book
The Creeper ( Brennan & Esposito book 2)
By Tania Carver

Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments

 
Suzanne Perry is having a vivid nightmare. Someone is in her bedroom, touching her, and she can't move a muscle. She wakes, relieved to put the nightmare behind her, but when she opens the curtains, she sees a polaroid stuck to the window. A photo of her sleeping self, taken during the night. And underneath the words: 'I'm watching over you'. Her nightmare isn't over. In fact, it's just beginning. Detective Inspector Phil Brennan of the Major Incident Squad has a killer to hunt. A killer who stalks young women, insinuates himself into their lives, and ultimately tortures and murders them in the most shocking way possible. But the more Phil investigates, the more he delves into the twisted psychology of his quarry, Phil realises that it isn't just a serial killer he's hunting but something ? or someone ? infinitely more calculating and horrific. And much closer to home than he realised ...


I didn’t think they could follow up from The Surrogate but they did! I loved this the authors have this crazy way of playing on those fears. The characters are well thought out and executed. This book didn’t take long as I just devoured it. Can’t wait to see what comes next!
  
Night Moves (2014)
Night Moves (2014)
2014 | Drama
For all intents and purposes, this is a fatally flawed movie - I mean it practically dumps all its would-be themes right after the first half, drags hard, deliberately leaves a ton of stuff unresolved, and turns into a rather conventional thriller that leaves a lot to be desired in the end. Yet I was completely enthralled by it almost every second - breathless - because this is a near-perfectly built product. Firstly this is undoubtedly in my top ten movie scores of all time, I just adore this stuff - it elevates where the writing needed a boost and it's the exact type of moody digital backdrop I crave out of movies. And that color palette? Fucking sublime. This weaponizes Eisenberg's meek neuroticism, Fanning's niceness, Sarsgaard's "What the fuck did you just say?" demeanor, and Reichardt's caution into a product that's always one step away from the abyss - a product constantly on edge. Every pedestrian is a threat, every set of headlights in the distance a threat, every trivial but still less-than-perfectly-normal action incriminating. Composed within an inch of its life in almost every regard. And this is all not even to mention how impeccably it captures how weird and unable to function with regular society these types of delusional misanthropic environmentalists are - even down to the homely appearance and always seemingly agitated demeanor.
  
Annabelle (2014)
Annabelle (2014)
2014 | Horror
Shockingly not terrible. Don't get it twisted, the first 45 minutes still represent the worst of what horror movies can be (sewing machines are not fucking scary no matter how much royalty-free sounding, overloud music cues and ugly CGI blood you put around them) but after that it immediately wakes up and becomes something sort of half-serviceable. Its assets still have to work in service of another one of these shallow husks of horror franchise spin-offs complete with bottom-of-the-barrel acting from its two leads, sloppy editing, amateur-hour dialogue, and zero reason for existing. But that being said, this is actually a more interesting take on motherhood persevering through demonic possession than 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘫𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 - its characters are somewhat better and it introduces some intriguing threads about how religion presents itself in people's personal problems. Granted it doesn't do too much with them buy hey, they're there. Plus that entire elevator/staircase segment (barring the idiotic final jump) is effective as hell and Alfre Woodard is terrific. Kind of fun for a while, but not only am I still wondering why this needed to happen... but if it did, why was it pushed out in such a state? Though hey, at least it went with the R-rating which this easily could have skipped out on.
  
Snowpiercer (2013)
Snowpiercer (2013)
2013 | Sci-Fi
No. not the Netflix series.

The movie on which it is based.

If I'm honest, I didn't even know that there was such a thing, until I saw it pop up on Amazon Prime after having seen the trailer for the series on Netflix.

After a bit of research did nothing but say good things about both (movie and series), I thought I would give the movie a go first.

Set in the not-too-distant-future, where a science experiment to stop global warming has instead resulted in a new Ice Age, the film (and series) posits society surviving on a train that is circling the globe in perpetuity, with those in power at the front of the train (living in the lap of luxury), whilst - the further back you go - the worse conditions get. And it's at the very back of the train that we pick up, with Chris Evans (here, no Captain America!) about to lead another revolt five years after the failure of the last.

It's an interesting set-up, with some impressive (if improbable) special effects as we move up the train (and see the outside world through the windows), with Tilda Swinton stealing the show as the loathsome Minister Mason.

Now I'm off the (maybe) see what the series is like ...
  
Been There, Married That
Been There, Married That
Gigi Levangie Grazer | 2020 | Contemporary
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
‏I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.

Agnes Murphy Nash has the perfect Hollywood life...or so she thought until arriving home to find the gates and doors locked and is prevented from entering her own house. What ensues is a humorous look at divorce, the stupid things people do while divorcing, and how badly we can act.

Gigi Levangie Grazer could have written Been There, Married That as a Debbie Downer book especially when discussing Agnes having to still cohabitate with her husband during the divorce. Anyone who had to endure cohabitating knows there is not much to laugh about. Grazier focuses on the negative but writes it with such style you are guaranteed to laugh.

I do not usually read "women's fiction" or "chick lit" but, after reading its description, I figured I would give it a try. I am so glad I chose this novel. I will continue with my norms (mystery, YA, SciFi) but will not shun women's fiction immediately from now on. I will probably still avoid romances but Been There, Married That is not a romance novel.

I also heard part of the audiobook. The narrator, Amy McFadden, did a fabulous job and really brought this novel and its humor to life.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 5/23/20.
  
    Handwritten email

    Handwritten email

    Social Networking and Utilities

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    Send your email and MMS texting with handwritten text. This will give your emails a nice personal...