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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2099 KP) rated The Scarecrow (Jack McEvoy #2) in Books
Apr 18, 2021
Will Jack End His Career in a Blaze of Glory?
After a decade covering crime for The Los Angeles Times, Jack McEvoy has just gotten let go due to budget cuts. He has two weeks left to train his replacement, but he also intends to use that time to write one last major story. He thinks he’s found that story when he hears about Alonzo Winslow, a sixteen-year-old drug dealer in prison for a brutal murder he denies committing. As Jack investigates, he once again crosses paths with FBI agent Rachel Walling. Can the two of them figure out what is really going on?
I enjoyed Jack and Rachel’s first book, so I was glad to finally get to their second novel. They make a great team, and their characters are as strong as ever. The rest of the cast is just as great. The mystery is full of twists and thrills, and I always had a hard time putting the book down. The book did get a bit too far into the details a couple of times for my taste, but fortunately, those scenes didn’t last long. I do wish that author Michael Connelly would figure out a way to set up his climatic set pieces without stopping the story to give us data dumps. It’s always obvious when that happens, too. It’s a minor issue, but still something that makes me rolls my eyes. Overall, this is a strong thriller that kept me engaged until I reached the end.
I enjoyed Jack and Rachel’s first book, so I was glad to finally get to their second novel. They make a great team, and their characters are as strong as ever. The rest of the cast is just as great. The mystery is full of twists and thrills, and I always had a hard time putting the book down. The book did get a bit too far into the details a couple of times for my taste, but fortunately, those scenes didn’t last long. I do wish that author Michael Connelly would figure out a way to set up his climatic set pieces without stopping the story to give us data dumps. It’s always obvious when that happens, too. It’s a minor issue, but still something that makes me rolls my eyes. Overall, this is a strong thriller that kept me engaged until I reached the end.
Christine A. (965 KP) rated The Shadows in Books
Aug 24, 2020
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review. The opinions are entirely my own, and any quotes are taken from the ARC and may be different in the final published copy.
While I have "read" audiobooks for years now, this is the first one I was given to review. Let me catch my breath before starting. Wow! OK. Wow! That needed to be said.
Alex North's "debut" novel, The Whisper Man, was a 2019 Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Mystery & Thriller. When I finished reading it, I immediately added his second book, The Shadows, to my must-read list.
The narrators of The Shadows are Hannah Arterton and John Heffernan. The combination of North's writing and Arterton and Heffernan's narration provides a story that feels as if the narrators are the characters themselves, sitting by a fire, retelling North's story, and not merely reading the story. It is their narration that helps North bring the listener down the rabbit hole and ending up questioning everything they thought was true. I needed to reread sections to see how I could have gotten everything so wrong.
North is a British crime writer who has previously published under another name. According to Goodreads, this is Arterton's first narration. While Heffernan has narrated a few novels, he writes mostly for film and TV but also wrote Driver For The Dead, his first comic book series.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 7/14/20 and updated on 8/24/20.
While I have "read" audiobooks for years now, this is the first one I was given to review. Let me catch my breath before starting. Wow! OK. Wow! That needed to be said.
Alex North's "debut" novel, The Whisper Man, was a 2019 Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Mystery & Thriller. When I finished reading it, I immediately added his second book, The Shadows, to my must-read list.
The narrators of The Shadows are Hannah Arterton and John Heffernan. The combination of North's writing and Arterton and Heffernan's narration provides a story that feels as if the narrators are the characters themselves, sitting by a fire, retelling North's story, and not merely reading the story. It is their narration that helps North bring the listener down the rabbit hole and ending up questioning everything they thought was true. I needed to reread sections to see how I could have gotten everything so wrong.
North is a British crime writer who has previously published under another name. According to Goodreads, this is Arterton's first narration. While Heffernan has narrated a few novels, he writes mostly for film and TV but also wrote Driver For The Dead, his first comic book series.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 7/14/20 and updated on 8/24/20.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated The Plotters in Books
Oct 16, 2023
154 of 235
Book
The Plotters
By Un-su Kim
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Behind every assassination, there is an anonymous mastermind--a plotter--working in the shadows. Plotters quietly dictate the moves of the city's most dangerous criminals, but their existence is little more than legend. Just who are the plotters? And more important, what do they want?
Reseng is an assassin. Raised by a cantankerous killer named Old Raccoon in the crime headquarters "The Library," Reseng never questioned anything: where to go, who to kill, or why his home was filled with books that no one ever read. But one day, Reseng steps out of line on a job, toppling a set of carefully calibrated plans. And when he uncovers an extraordinary scheme set into motion by an eccentric trio of young women--a convenience store clerk, her wheelchair-bound sister, and a cross-eyed librarian--Reseng will have to decide if he will remain a pawn or finally take control of the plot.
Crackling with action and filled with unforgettable characters, The Plotters is a deeply entertaining thriller that soars with the soul, wit, and lyricism of real literary craft.
I really enjoyed this book it was dark, twisty and violent. A look into the dark world of an assassin life one that doesn’t like doing what he does. Knowing he has only one way out. I wasn’t expecting to like it at all it was a mystery book I had in a subscription box. It was really well translated too.
Book
The Plotters
By Un-su Kim
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Behind every assassination, there is an anonymous mastermind--a plotter--working in the shadows. Plotters quietly dictate the moves of the city's most dangerous criminals, but their existence is little more than legend. Just who are the plotters? And more important, what do they want?
Reseng is an assassin. Raised by a cantankerous killer named Old Raccoon in the crime headquarters "The Library," Reseng never questioned anything: where to go, who to kill, or why his home was filled with books that no one ever read. But one day, Reseng steps out of line on a job, toppling a set of carefully calibrated plans. And when he uncovers an extraordinary scheme set into motion by an eccentric trio of young women--a convenience store clerk, her wheelchair-bound sister, and a cross-eyed librarian--Reseng will have to decide if he will remain a pawn or finally take control of the plot.
Crackling with action and filled with unforgettable characters, The Plotters is a deeply entertaining thriller that soars with the soul, wit, and lyricism of real literary craft.
I really enjoyed this book it was dark, twisty and violent. A look into the dark world of an assassin life one that doesn’t like doing what he does. Knowing he has only one way out. I wasn’t expecting to like it at all it was a mystery book I had in a subscription box. It was really well translated too.
David McK (3251 KP) rated The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) in Movies
Feb 20, 2022
Spider-man, Spider-man, does whatever a spider can ...
To do, there have been three actors starring as Spider-man on the big screen: Tobey Maguire (who had 3 movies), Andrew Garfield (2 movies) and Tom Holland (3 movies, not counting his various cameos or team-ups).
This is the first of the two Andrew Garfield (so pre Spider-man in the MCU) starring movies, again set during the early days of his crime-fighting career and telling how he got his powers: this time around, though, the first villain he faces is The Lizard rather than the Green Goblin. it also takes - at least in the very early parts of the movie - more of a thriller approach to his (Peter Parker's) story, laying the groundwork with an explanation of how he comes to live with his Aunt and Uncle (a groundwork which is seemingly forgotten about by the mid-way point of the movie), and with Garfields Parker coming across more as a 'cool kid' - skateboard and all! - than the nerdy Maguire version.
That's not the only differences: there's no MJ Watson (with her role replaced by Gwen Stacey), we're back to having his web-shooters being non-organic, and this Spider-man does seem quippier than Maguire's version whilst there's also several first-person POV segments throughout (the early 2010s, remember - 3d was still a thing).
Unfortunately, there's also no stand-out moments: nothing to rival the upside-down kiss (from Spider-Man), the train fight (Spider-Man 2) or even the Venom sequences from Spider-Man 3
This is the first of the two Andrew Garfield (so pre Spider-man in the MCU) starring movies, again set during the early days of his crime-fighting career and telling how he got his powers: this time around, though, the first villain he faces is The Lizard rather than the Green Goblin. it also takes - at least in the very early parts of the movie - more of a thriller approach to his (Peter Parker's) story, laying the groundwork with an explanation of how he comes to live with his Aunt and Uncle (a groundwork which is seemingly forgotten about by the mid-way point of the movie), and with Garfields Parker coming across more as a 'cool kid' - skateboard and all! - than the nerdy Maguire version.
That's not the only differences: there's no MJ Watson (with her role replaced by Gwen Stacey), we're back to having his web-shooters being non-organic, and this Spider-man does seem quippier than Maguire's version whilst there's also several first-person POV segments throughout (the early 2010s, remember - 3d was still a thing).
Unfortunately, there's also no stand-out moments: nothing to rival the upside-down kiss (from Spider-Man), the train fight (Spider-Man 2) or even the Venom sequences from Spider-Man 3
Acanthea Grimscythe (300 KP) rated The Cutaway in Books
May 16, 2018
I seem to be of a minority when it comes to those that have read Christina Kovac's debut novel The Cutaway. Tagged as a mystery, suspense, and thriller novel, it really doesn't feel like one to me. While there are elements of a typical thriller, the crime at hand and the persons of interest take a back seat to the main character's love life for nearly three-fourths of the novel. In fact, the missing woman is practically non-existent for much of the story. To me, that's a pretty big turn off. I nearly dropped it, actually.
The Cutaway is supposed to focus on Virginia Knightly's efforts of getting the scoop on a missing person. En route to tracking down the perpetrator, readers encounter the typical sort of motives: affairs, money, political intrigue. It's a pretty standard plot when it comes to suspense novels. The twists are predictable and the story remains dreadfully slow until the final twenty to thirty percent.
For the most part, the characters of The Cutaway are painfully flat. Most of the male characters, with the exception of the News Director, are handsome with exceptionally whiny personalities. The News Director, Mellay, is a stereotypical angry boss sort who only cares about his own pockets. Even worse, the female characters are all Mary Sues. Sure, they have their own troubling pasts, but for as much suffering as they went through in their childhoods, the effect it has had on their adulthood is fairly minor. All of the women are drop dead gorgeous, not counting one of the witnesses. Ugh - that's all I can really say about that.
It's also clear from reading the novel that Kovac's most familiar with the reporting side of an investigation, which is to be expected from someone who has spent much of their time in the same career as the main character. Unfortunately, it also lends a bit of blandness to the story telling.
Overall, The Cutaway was an extremely painful read. Many times I considered dropping it: I could not get into the characters and I feel that the novel is more suited to the romance genre. There are several questions left unanswered and parts of it feel either rushed or as if Kovac is simply grasping at straws.
I would like to thank Atria Publishing, the author, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy for review.
The Cutaway is supposed to focus on Virginia Knightly's efforts of getting the scoop on a missing person. En route to tracking down the perpetrator, readers encounter the typical sort of motives: affairs, money, political intrigue. It's a pretty standard plot when it comes to suspense novels. The twists are predictable and the story remains dreadfully slow until the final twenty to thirty percent.
For the most part, the characters of The Cutaway are painfully flat. Most of the male characters, with the exception of the News Director, are handsome with exceptionally whiny personalities. The News Director, Mellay, is a stereotypical angry boss sort who only cares about his own pockets. Even worse, the female characters are all Mary Sues. Sure, they have their own troubling pasts, but for as much suffering as they went through in their childhoods, the effect it has had on their adulthood is fairly minor. All of the women are drop dead gorgeous, not counting one of the witnesses. Ugh - that's all I can really say about that.
It's also clear from reading the novel that Kovac's most familiar with the reporting side of an investigation, which is to be expected from someone who has spent much of their time in the same career as the main character. Unfortunately, it also lends a bit of blandness to the story telling.
Overall, The Cutaway was an extremely painful read. Many times I considered dropping it: I could not get into the characters and I feel that the novel is more suited to the romance genre. There are several questions left unanswered and parts of it feel either rushed or as if Kovac is simply grasping at straws.
I would like to thank Atria Publishing, the author, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy for review.
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated Triple Frontier (2019) in Movies
Jul 5, 2020
Choices and Consequences - 7/10
Triple Frontier is a 2019 action/thriller movie directed by J.C. Chandor. The screenplay was written by J.C. Chandor and Mark Boal with story also by Mark Boal. Starring Ben Affleck, Oscar Isaac, Charlie Hunnam, Garrett Hedlund, and Pedro Pascal.
In Columbia fighting drug crime, Santiago "Pope" Garcia (Oscar Isaac), has been working for 3 years. Finally the moment he's been waiting for occurs, when his informant, a woman named Yovanna (Adria Arjona), offers the location of a big time drug lord in exchange for smuggling her brother and her out of the country. She also tells him that the drug lord Lorea keeps all his money with him in his safe house in the jungle. Pope recruits his friends, a group of ex Army Special Forces, for a mission to take out Lorea and seize the money for themselves. But when things go wrong it's one unexpected turn of events after the other, with things spiralling out of control. In an epic battle for survival they are pushed to their breaking point, putting their morals, skills, and loyalties to the test.
This movie was good. Wasn't quite what I expected. As good as it was, I feel like it was missing something. It was a little slow in the beginning, after the first action sequence, and pacing was a bit off. Definitely as advertised in being an action/thriller. If you like action scenes where they shoot-'em-up, this definitely has plenty. I just felt with the pacing that they were far and in between. The acting was very good, the only thing I would say is that the characters didn't have much to keep you connected to them and really care about what happens to them in the long run. It felt like they weren't fully fleshed out and they could have done more to do that better. One thing it did do very well was how it showed the motivations of some of the characters and what led them to the decisions they made. I give this movie a 7/10.
In Columbia fighting drug crime, Santiago "Pope" Garcia (Oscar Isaac), has been working for 3 years. Finally the moment he's been waiting for occurs, when his informant, a woman named Yovanna (Adria Arjona), offers the location of a big time drug lord in exchange for smuggling her brother and her out of the country. She also tells him that the drug lord Lorea keeps all his money with him in his safe house in the jungle. Pope recruits his friends, a group of ex Army Special Forces, for a mission to take out Lorea and seize the money for themselves. But when things go wrong it's one unexpected turn of events after the other, with things spiralling out of control. In an epic battle for survival they are pushed to their breaking point, putting their morals, skills, and loyalties to the test.
This movie was good. Wasn't quite what I expected. As good as it was, I feel like it was missing something. It was a little slow in the beginning, after the first action sequence, and pacing was a bit off. Definitely as advertised in being an action/thriller. If you like action scenes where they shoot-'em-up, this definitely has plenty. I just felt with the pacing that they were far and in between. The acting was very good, the only thing I would say is that the characters didn't have much to keep you connected to them and really care about what happens to them in the long run. It felt like they weren't fully fleshed out and they could have done more to do that better. One thing it did do very well was how it showed the motivations of some of the characters and what led them to the decisions they made. I give this movie a 7/10.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Out of Death (2021) in Movies
Jul 30, 2021
I got my hands on a preview of this one. Modern Bruce Willis is always a slight concern, but I like to give them the benefit of the doubt.
In this peaceful mountain town, a quiet hike turns to terror as a photographer witnesses a brutal crime by the very people who are supposed to protect against them.
On the scale of messed up plots, Out of Death isn't actually that bad. Corrupt law enforcement caught in the act is a strong idea to use in a crime thriller. The setting also gave them a lot of opportunities even though it's a fairly simple forest/wooded setting. Though that setting suffers a little from TARDIS-esque qualities, is it big, is it small, how does time work in and around it? I found myself wondering about those random things, which may have been down to not feeling massively engaged with anything happening.
From the small collection of characters, Billie and Tom probably came out the best. Though no one quite got out unscathed. They did at least have a bond that played out well in a few scenes.
Beyond them, the rest of the cast don't do so well with the script. There are points where it tries to give characters something a little extra, but it ultimately came out a little on the creepy side. I'm thinking in particular about one scene where two characters try to have a human conversation and build a little backstory... it was bad, and made me cringe. I haven't felt that way about a film interaction in a very long time.
As much as I love Bruce Willis, he basically wanders through this one without much effort. The whole affair felt rather lethargic, and as with his other recent films, it's a phoned-in effort. Without him, I doubt anyone would have come across Out of Death, there's nothing that's a particular hook, and with such a generic air to it, I can't see anyone picking it out of a line-up of similar films.
Out of Death might not be the worst film I've ever seen, but there's lots of room for improvement. As it is, it doesn't hold your attention enough to make it massively enjoyable. At the very least you can enjoy the scenery.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2021/07/out-of-death-movie-review.html
In this peaceful mountain town, a quiet hike turns to terror as a photographer witnesses a brutal crime by the very people who are supposed to protect against them.
On the scale of messed up plots, Out of Death isn't actually that bad. Corrupt law enforcement caught in the act is a strong idea to use in a crime thriller. The setting also gave them a lot of opportunities even though it's a fairly simple forest/wooded setting. Though that setting suffers a little from TARDIS-esque qualities, is it big, is it small, how does time work in and around it? I found myself wondering about those random things, which may have been down to not feeling massively engaged with anything happening.
From the small collection of characters, Billie and Tom probably came out the best. Though no one quite got out unscathed. They did at least have a bond that played out well in a few scenes.
Beyond them, the rest of the cast don't do so well with the script. There are points where it tries to give characters something a little extra, but it ultimately came out a little on the creepy side. I'm thinking in particular about one scene where two characters try to have a human conversation and build a little backstory... it was bad, and made me cringe. I haven't felt that way about a film interaction in a very long time.
As much as I love Bruce Willis, he basically wanders through this one without much effort. The whole affair felt rather lethargic, and as with his other recent films, it's a phoned-in effort. Without him, I doubt anyone would have come across Out of Death, there's nothing that's a particular hook, and with such a generic air to it, I can't see anyone picking it out of a line-up of similar films.
Out of Death might not be the worst film I've ever seen, but there's lots of room for improvement. As it is, it doesn't hold your attention enough to make it massively enjoyable. At the very least you can enjoy the scenery.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2021/07/out-of-death-movie-review.html
Darren (1599 KP) rated Frank & Lola (2016) in Movies
Sep 13, 2019
Characters – Frank is a brilliant chef that has started dating the younger Lola, he gets jealous easily which makes him want to know who every man in Lola’s life is as he starts to look to solve her problems. Lola is a college graduate in fashion that is in Vegas, she is dating Frank and starts working for the charismatic Keith, she knows what will make Frank jealous as she starts to use him to get what she wants. Keith knows people in Vegas, he offers jobs to talent, which will see him follow a strict code of not trying to date them, he will always offer people job if he believes they deserve the change. Patricia is Lola’s mother that hasn’t always been as close with her daughter.
Performances – We have such a great cast here, Michael Shannon gives one of his most average performances of his career, Imogen Poots struggles to make an impact, Justin Long gets his moments, but not enough. Most of this comes from such dull characters they must try to bring to life.
Story – The story is the hardest part to describe because it seems to follow a chef that is trying to do anything to clean up his girlfriends past, only to get caught up in the middle of just what might be true or not. The problem with the story comes from the poor dialogue which makes it hard to connect the story together, it seems to create scenes which put Frank’s mind in one direction only for the next one to change it, this happens too often and becomes annoying because we can’t get invested in his story. we did get some heavy themes which do just get glanced over which only confuses in the end.
Crime/Romance – The crime side of the film comes from what Frank will do for Lola, he is driven by his love for her which shows him where to go with his actions.
Settings – The film has two main settings, Las Vegas and Paris, both are used to show the busy side of the lives of the people we are follow.
Scene of the Movie – Job offer.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The story is too heavy on changing direction too often.
Final Thoughts – This is a dull romantic thriller that just drags along at a snails pace, never using the talent to its strengths.
Overall: Bitterly disappointing.
Performances – We have such a great cast here, Michael Shannon gives one of his most average performances of his career, Imogen Poots struggles to make an impact, Justin Long gets his moments, but not enough. Most of this comes from such dull characters they must try to bring to life.
Story – The story is the hardest part to describe because it seems to follow a chef that is trying to do anything to clean up his girlfriends past, only to get caught up in the middle of just what might be true or not. The problem with the story comes from the poor dialogue which makes it hard to connect the story together, it seems to create scenes which put Frank’s mind in one direction only for the next one to change it, this happens too often and becomes annoying because we can’t get invested in his story. we did get some heavy themes which do just get glanced over which only confuses in the end.
Crime/Romance – The crime side of the film comes from what Frank will do for Lola, he is driven by his love for her which shows him where to go with his actions.
Settings – The film has two main settings, Las Vegas and Paris, both are used to show the busy side of the lives of the people we are follow.
Scene of the Movie – Job offer.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The story is too heavy on changing direction too often.
Final Thoughts – This is a dull romantic thriller that just drags along at a snails pace, never using the talent to its strengths.
Overall: Bitterly disappointing.