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Chris Hooker (419 KP) rated The Torturer's Daughter (Internal Defense #1) in Books
Jan 12, 2018
I received this book as a give away as part of a compilation [Shattered Worlds]. I have decided to give each book it's own review as I finish them to give the authors their due.
In [The Torturer's Daughter] {Zoe Cannon] has created a excellent coming of age novel dealing with making the tough choices even if it goes against all you have known. It is all about becoming your own person.
Becca knows that her mom's job in Internal is a tough one that causes most people to fear her. In fact she knows that her mom tortures people but tries to keep herself in denial because it is her mom. That is until the night of a frantic phone call from her best friend. The events that follow will change Becca's world forever.
In [The Torturer's Daughter] {Zoe Cannon] has created a excellent coming of age novel dealing with making the tough choices even if it goes against all you have known. It is all about becoming your own person.
Becca knows that her mom's job in Internal is a tough one that causes most people to fear her. In fact she knows that her mom tortures people but tries to keep herself in denial because it is her mom. That is until the night of a frantic phone call from her best friend. The events that follow will change Becca's world forever.
ClareR (5996 KP) rated My Mother’s Secret in Books
May 13, 2018 (Updated May 13, 2018)
Lizzie Bradshaw witnessed a terrible crime and had to pay the ultimate price. Emma Taylor has a terrible secret that she seems to have hidden even from herself. Stella Taylor, Emma’s teenaged daughter, knows that something is going on with her mum.
This is such a good story with lots of twists and turns. It’s quite sad, really. Even when you think everything is going to be all right, well, it’s not.
I didn’t see the end coming at all!!
Kay writes teenagers really well: how confused they are, and ultimately, vulnerable. Speaking of vulnerability, Emma is a sad character who clearly has a lot of issues.
A very entertaining story.
Thanks to The Pigeonhole for their serialisations of this book, and the publisher Corvus for making it available!
This is such a good story with lots of twists and turns. It’s quite sad, really. Even when you think everything is going to be all right, well, it’s not.
I didn’t see the end coming at all!!
Kay writes teenagers really well: how confused they are, and ultimately, vulnerable. Speaking of vulnerability, Emma is a sad character who clearly has a lot of issues.
A very entertaining story.
Thanks to The Pigeonhole for their serialisations of this book, and the publisher Corvus for making it available!
Chelsea (166 KP) rated Two Girls Down: A Novel in Books
May 3, 2018
Alice Vega is a basically professional head hunter and, when hired to find two young girls who vanished from a Kmart parking lot, enlists the help of a local retired cop turned private investigator, Max Caplan or “Cap”.
The POV goes back and forth between Alice and Cap, which I really enjoyed. Alice is sort of mysterious and keeps a cool head, not showing many emotions to others, but the reader gets to feel what she’s really feeling. Though divorced, Cap is a family man and I loved his relationship with his daughter. Both were determined to find these girls and would do whatever it took. There was also a little romantic tension between Cap and Vega, but then at the end nothing came of it, which was pretty disappointing. Overall a good read!
The POV goes back and forth between Alice and Cap, which I really enjoyed. Alice is sort of mysterious and keeps a cool head, not showing many emotions to others, but the reader gets to feel what she’s really feeling. Though divorced, Cap is a family man and I loved his relationship with his daughter. Both were determined to find these girls and would do whatever it took. There was also a little romantic tension between Cap and Vega, but then at the end nothing came of it, which was pretty disappointing. Overall a good read!
Sue (5 KP) rated Paper, Scissors, Death (Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-n-Craft Mystery, #1) in Books
Apr 23, 2018
book description:
Mousy housewife Kiki Lowenstein has two great loves: scrapbooking and her young daughter, Anya. But her happy family album is ruined when her husband, George, is found naked and dead in a hotel room. As Kiki tracks down George's murderer, she discovers his sordid secret life.
Cruel taunts by George's former flame compel Kiki to spout an unwise threat. When the woman is murdered, Kiki's scissor-sharp words make her the prime suspect. She could be creating scrapbook keepsakes for the rest of her life-behind bars. Supported by her loyal friends, along with a little help (and a lot of stomach flutters) from the dashing Detective Detweiler, can Kiki cut the true killer out of the picture and design a new life for herself and Anya?
Mousy housewife Kiki Lowenstein has two great loves: scrapbooking and her young daughter, Anya. But her happy family album is ruined when her husband, George, is found naked and dead in a hotel room. As Kiki tracks down George's murderer, she discovers his sordid secret life.
Cruel taunts by George's former flame compel Kiki to spout an unwise threat. When the woman is murdered, Kiki's scissor-sharp words make her the prime suspect. She could be creating scrapbook keepsakes for the rest of her life-behind bars. Supported by her loyal friends, along with a little help (and a lot of stomach flutters) from the dashing Detective Detweiler, can Kiki cut the true killer out of the picture and design a new life for herself and Anya?
Sue (5 KP) rated Cut, Crop & Die (Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-n-Craft Mystery, #2) in Books
Apr 23, 2018
book description:
All it took was one scone. When the hot-tempered (and widely hated) hobbyist Yvonne Gaynor eats a tainted pastry at Kiki's scrapbooking crop party, it triggers an allergy that leads to Yvonne's death. Even worse, the police suspect foul play when they realize that someone tampered with the treats and swiped the victim's allergy medication.
An expert at stealing design ideas, Yvonne had enough enemies to fill a memory album. Soon, the scrapbooking community pins her murder on Kiki's friends and our ace scrapper finds herself dealing with anti-Semitic threats at the shop, a quarrelsome pre-teen daughter at home, a meddlesome mother-in-law, and constant financial pressure. Despite help from the handsome yet annoyingly coy Detective Detweiler, Kiki has her work cut out for her in solving the crime.
All it took was one scone. When the hot-tempered (and widely hated) hobbyist Yvonne Gaynor eats a tainted pastry at Kiki's scrapbooking crop party, it triggers an allergy that leads to Yvonne's death. Even worse, the police suspect foul play when they realize that someone tampered with the treats and swiped the victim's allergy medication.
An expert at stealing design ideas, Yvonne had enough enemies to fill a memory album. Soon, the scrapbooking community pins her murder on Kiki's friends and our ace scrapper finds herself dealing with anti-Semitic threats at the shop, a quarrelsome pre-teen daughter at home, a meddlesome mother-in-law, and constant financial pressure. Despite help from the handsome yet annoyingly coy Detective Detweiler, Kiki has her work cut out for her in solving the crime.
Andrew Kennedy (199 KP) rated I Am Mother (2019) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019
Watched this on impulse and glad I did.
The cast is small, the concept is tried and tested and the sets are amazing.
Don't want to give too much away but after an incident that destroys the human race, in a lab a droid called Mother raises a daughter from embryo to teen. Training her to be a doctor.
Then a woman arrives from outside and she reveals that Mother may not have been totally truthful. There is a very uncomfortable scene of bullet extraction without pain relief.
It maybe a little bit of a predictable ending but the acting from the small cast is superb and you will forgive it's predictability.
Yes it's very Terminator in its execution of its central idea of can you trust machine.
The cast is small, the concept is tried and tested and the sets are amazing.
Don't want to give too much away but after an incident that destroys the human race, in a lab a droid called Mother raises a daughter from embryo to teen. Training her to be a doctor.
Then a woman arrives from outside and she reveals that Mother may not have been totally truthful. There is a very uncomfortable scene of bullet extraction without pain relief.
It maybe a little bit of a predictable ending but the acting from the small cast is superb and you will forgive it's predictability.
Yes it's very Terminator in its execution of its central idea of can you trust machine.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2440 KP) rated File M for Murder (Cat in the Stacks, #3) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
Charlie Harris is delighted to have his daughter, Laura, in town for the semester teaching drama at Athena College. He’s less excited about having Connor Lawton as the writer in residence since the playwright is nasty man. However, it is still a surprise when Laura finds him murdered late one afternoon. Who hated Connor enough to kill him?
Having Laura in town was wonderful since it gave us a chance to get to see a different side of Charlie. We’re actually getting a rather large cast of characters already, but I truly love them all. Yet the characters never slow down the plot, which builds steady to a logical yet surprising climax.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/03/book-review-file-m-for-murder-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Having Laura in town was wonderful since it gave us a chance to get to see a different side of Charlie. We’re actually getting a rather large cast of characters already, but I truly love them all. Yet the characters never slow down the plot, which builds steady to a logical yet surprising climax.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/03/book-review-file-m-for-murder-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Hilary dreams of become a pirate. But she' s a girl and the daughter of an admirable. Still, at the first chance, she runs away and joins up. Tasked with finding a treasure using a map with no markings, she might be in over her head. Can she do it?
This was a complete delight. The characters are warm and charming, the plot moves forward quickly, and the book is filled with great humor. I can't wait for the next one to come out (fall of 2014, but I'm not counting at all). Definitely recommended for anyone in the target middle grade audience or older.
NOTE: I got this book via the Amazon Vine program.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/10/book-review-magic-marks-spot-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
This was a complete delight. The characters are warm and charming, the plot moves forward quickly, and the book is filled with great humor. I can't wait for the next one to come out (fall of 2014, but I'm not counting at all). Definitely recommended for anyone in the target middle grade audience or older.
NOTE: I got this book via the Amazon Vine program.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/10/book-review-magic-marks-spot-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Countess Dracula (1971) in Movies
Feb 14, 2018 (Updated Feb 14, 2018)
Historically-inspired Hammer horror; not actually part of its main Dracula series, but the title helped the box office, I guess. Ageing Hungarian noblewoman discovers she can restore her youth by bathing in virgin blood, takes a shine to a young soldier, decides to impersonate her own daughter in order to woo him (as you would). Meanwhile life for the domestic staff around the castle becomes unexpectedly more hazardous.
Restrained and thoughtful horror movie; a bit less garish and gory than you might think. Interesting subtext about the relationship between the young and the old, and fear of ageing. Driven along by a terrific performance from Ingrid Pitt (Pitt thought there should have been more blood in the movie). Runs out of things to do slightly before the end, but still a classy movie.
Restrained and thoughtful horror movie; a bit less garish and gory than you might think. Interesting subtext about the relationship between the young and the old, and fear of ageing. Driven along by a terrific performance from Ingrid Pitt (Pitt thought there should have been more blood in the movie). Runs out of things to do slightly before the end, but still a classy movie.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995) in Movies
Feb 14, 2018 (Updated Feb 14, 2018)
Turtle Recall
Hugely confident reinvention not just of Gamera the flying turtle but also, maybe, the whole kaiju movie genre. Japan is plagued by man-eating Gyaos birds, finds unexpected assistance when floating island turns out to be giant flying turtle with plasma fireball breath. Stage is set for climactic showdown between Gamera and the last, colossal Gyaos in downtown Tokyo (of course).
Altogether much lighter on its feet than Toho's Godzilla movies from the same period; makers have clearly studied the tropes of the genre and reinvent and deploy them to great effect. Hugely enjoyable monster action sequences, solid work from the human cast as well (Steven Seagal's daughter Ayako Fujitani is clearly the one in the family with acting talent). The two sequels are possibly even better.
Altogether much lighter on its feet than Toho's Godzilla movies from the same period; makers have clearly studied the tropes of the genre and reinvent and deploy them to great effect. Hugely enjoyable monster action sequences, solid work from the human cast as well (Steven Seagal's daughter Ayako Fujitani is clearly the one in the family with acting talent). The two sequels are possibly even better.