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Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated In Her Footsteps in Books
Jun 5, 2019
In this exciting domestic thriller by Ruth Harrow, Harriet tells the story of her abuse and her efforts to go into hiding from her husband Dan.
Having fled from London, she sets up shop in Coventry, rebuilding her life, working and cautiously making new friends again. From the outside all looks well. However, the reader is led into a false sense of security and slowly we watch Harriet’s paranoia get the better of her, and cannot help but wonder if she is just worried because her past, or if there is something deeper going on.
In Her Footsteps was an entertaining debut book, broaching difficult topics surrounding physical abuse and the emotional distress it causes. I’ll be looking out for more from this author in the future.
Having fled from London, she sets up shop in Coventry, rebuilding her life, working and cautiously making new friends again. From the outside all looks well. However, the reader is led into a false sense of security and slowly we watch Harriet’s paranoia get the better of her, and cannot help but wonder if she is just worried because her past, or if there is something deeper going on.
In Her Footsteps was an entertaining debut book, broaching difficult topics surrounding physical abuse and the emotional distress it causes. I’ll be looking out for more from this author in the future.
Milleen (47 KP) rated Our Little Lies in Books
Jan 14, 2019
This is a very dramatic departure from the usual sugar dusted, bakery inspired novels Watson is so famous for. It’s a psychological, dark, domestic thriller that explores a seemingly perfect marriage, exposing what goes on behind closed doors. Marianne has everything, a handsome surgeon husband, a beautiful home and three children she adores. A perfect life. Then her husband says another woman’s name and her spiral descent begins. Is it paranoia or does she have reason to believe that this is another woman? This is a tense novel, using dramatic irony to pull you along Marianne’s journey. The characters are a little cliched, but I won’t spoil your reading by revealing too much. If you enjoy this genre then it is ‘unputdownable’.
James Koppert (2698 KP) rated Funny Cow (2017) in Movies
Nov 6, 2019
Another bleak British belter
British cinema tends to be a)about working class people and b) be very miserable. I had a group of American friends staying over and shared with then a selection of British films. They all admitted to feeling suicidal at the end of it.
Some people will watch Funny Cow and expect a rip roaring comedy about a female stand up comedian. That it is not. This is the story of a working class rebel fighting domestic violence and oppression by seeing the funny side. It is brave and probably be very misunderstood by most. For me it was a poignant reminder of the fight some people have to be heard. A brave and strong film.
Some people will watch Funny Cow and expect a rip roaring comedy about a female stand up comedian. That it is not. This is the story of a working class rebel fighting domestic violence and oppression by seeing the funny side. It is brave and probably be very misunderstood by most. For me it was a poignant reminder of the fight some people have to be heard. A brave and strong film.
Eleanor (1463 KP) rated Never Have I Ever in Books
Jul 4, 2019
Excellent domestic Thriller
This was my first Joshilyn Jackson read I can see why she is popular, this was a very well written book with some great multi layered characters in it. My understanding is Jackson is generally a more contemporary women’s fiction writer; so this turn at the domestic thriller is a bit of a change and I hope she keeps with it as it’s refreshing to get a really well written complicated protagonist in this genre.
I started off pretty unsure if I was going to get into it as we are in the world of American middle class suburban housewives and for me that generally is a big fat yawner of a world. I was getting ready to get the big old eye-rolls out but it wasn’t necessary just as I thought I knew where the book was going it went somewhere else and then proceeded to just get better and better.
Amy Whey is living in suburbia with her husband, step daughter and new baby. She has her neighbourhood best friend Charlotte (but I do wonder who the hell really abbreviates that to Char!?!) all in all very nice and normal life until the mysterious Angelica Roux moves into the neighbourhood and starts to pry into the past. As we learn more about Amy I went through constant shifts in my feelings to the character, meanwhile Roux is a full on hardcore manipulative bad ass and the constant back and forth is pretty tense.
A very compelling page turner of a thriller.
My thanks to the author, publisher Bloomsbury and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I started off pretty unsure if I was going to get into it as we are in the world of American middle class suburban housewives and for me that generally is a big fat yawner of a world. I was getting ready to get the big old eye-rolls out but it wasn’t necessary just as I thought I knew where the book was going it went somewhere else and then proceeded to just get better and better.
Amy Whey is living in suburbia with her husband, step daughter and new baby. She has her neighbourhood best friend Charlotte (but I do wonder who the hell really abbreviates that to Char!?!) all in all very nice and normal life until the mysterious Angelica Roux moves into the neighbourhood and starts to pry into the past. As we learn more about Amy I went through constant shifts in my feelings to the character, meanwhile Roux is a full on hardcore manipulative bad ass and the constant back and forth is pretty tense.
A very compelling page turner of a thriller.
My thanks to the author, publisher Bloomsbury and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Erika (17789 KP) rated The Life and Trials of Oscar Pistorius (30 for 30) in TV
Nov 25, 2020
I love ESPN's 30 for 30 series (the Tonya Harding documentary is one of my favorite sports docs). When I saw that they had done a series about Oscar Pistorius, I was all in.
This series consists of 4 episodes, that are nearly 2 hours each. To clarify, these TV shows with really long eps are not the norm in the USA, like they are elsewhere.
I had watched the Dateline ep on the Pistorious murder a few weeks before I watched this series. Of course, the narrative is of that one was skewed towards the story of domestic violence, and justice for Reeva. This is the story that's peddled all over the world. Not that it's wrong, I'm a supporter of women in domestic situations, but it's always struck me as extremely biased.
This doc did focus on Oscar, his upbringing, and his quest to complete in the able-bodied (sheesh - that's awful) Olympics. His side of the story is highly plausible, and his actions were a product of his upbringing. The documentary films really shed like on the social situation in South Africa at the time. Honestly, I only took one history class that dealt with continent in general, so there wasn't really a focus on the country itself. Seriously, the only things that stood out in my mind regarding South Africa were their incredibly odd accents, Mandela, and District 9. So, I found the additional information extremely interesting.
Overall, I found it to be far more balanced than anything I had seen in the past regarding the case, which was refreshing.
This series consists of 4 episodes, that are nearly 2 hours each. To clarify, these TV shows with really long eps are not the norm in the USA, like they are elsewhere.
I had watched the Dateline ep on the Pistorious murder a few weeks before I watched this series. Of course, the narrative is of that one was skewed towards the story of domestic violence, and justice for Reeva. This is the story that's peddled all over the world. Not that it's wrong, I'm a supporter of women in domestic situations, but it's always struck me as extremely biased.
This doc did focus on Oscar, his upbringing, and his quest to complete in the able-bodied (sheesh - that's awful) Olympics. His side of the story is highly plausible, and his actions were a product of his upbringing. The documentary films really shed like on the social situation in South Africa at the time. Honestly, I only took one history class that dealt with continent in general, so there wasn't really a focus on the country itself. Seriously, the only things that stood out in my mind regarding South Africa were their incredibly odd accents, Mandela, and District 9. So, I found the additional information extremely interesting.
Overall, I found it to be far more balanced than anything I had seen in the past regarding the case, which was refreshing.
Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated Someone Else's Skin in Books
Jul 28, 2017
Concept interesting but seems to be lacking
While I totally support the author's concept into revealing domestic violence from the other side (making sure people understand that the statistics are still very one sided) - there seems to be a lack of conclusion to the story. We don't know what happens to the main culprit or victims.
My favourite part is when one of the girls, who is being held against her will in an honour crime, has to take the initiative to help herself, which reinstates the problem with police in dealing with these kinds of issues and thinking of it as a secondary offence when it is just as serious, if not more. I can see that the author was attempting to break down taboos and stereotypes but doesn't quite get there
My favourite part is when one of the girls, who is being held against her will in an honour crime, has to take the initiative to help herself, which reinstates the problem with police in dealing with these kinds of issues and thinking of it as a secondary offence when it is just as serious, if not more. I can see that the author was attempting to break down taboos and stereotypes but doesn't quite get there
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 Fifty Shades Freed (2018) in Movies
Feb 12, 2018 (Updated Feb 12, 2018)
Mercifully brief compared to the other two (1 more)
A good advert for celibacy
Once More Unto the Sex Dungeon
(Hey, I know no shame, I will admit to watching this.) Yet more underwhelming shenanigans from the crayon of E.L. James, as thinly-characterised everygirl Anastasia and mysteriously alluring ripped billionaire Christian Grey embark upon married life together.
More of the same mixture of blandly aspirational low-octane soap opera and profoundly unerotic softcore porno; difficult to say which is more boring. Scores somewhat over the second one by actually having a sort of thriller subplot, which means there are moments which approach being dramatic. Supposedly edgy and transgressive saga concludes with the most conventional image of domestic happiness imaginable; says it all really. One quite funny line: too involved to repeat here, alas.
More of the same mixture of blandly aspirational low-octane soap opera and profoundly unerotic softcore porno; difficult to say which is more boring. Scores somewhat over the second one by actually having a sort of thriller subplot, which means there are moments which approach being dramatic. Supposedly edgy and transgressive saga concludes with the most conventional image of domestic happiness imaginable; says it all really. One quite funny line: too involved to repeat here, alas.
Dianne Robbins (1738 KP) rated Below Stairs: The Bestselling Memoirs of a 1920s Kitchen Maid in Books
Sep 3, 2018
Margaret Powell's memoir Below Stairs is growing up in a poor in money but rich in love with her family in a small village near London, England and her life in domestic service in the 1920s. It is simply wonderful. Her other memoirs Climbing the Stairs and Servants Hall and her Cookery Book are next on my list. It's more like listening to your favorite aunt sitting at the kitchen with you over fresh-baked cookies and glasses of homemade lemonade while retelling stories of her childhood and life in the early part of the 20th century. You HAVE to read it!. Julian Fellowes read her books and they were the inspiration behind the extremely popular BBC series Downton Abbey, that is watched by us in the states on PBS Masterpiece.
Milleen (47 KP) rated The Girl Before in Books
Nov 14, 2018
A twist on the popular domestic noir novels that have dominated the bestseller list. This psychological thriller revolves around Jane, recovering after a traumatic loss, she moves into an architectural showhome, an austere house with strict rules. One Folgate Street is a formidable fortress of technology that promotes, sleek, sterile, minimalist living but it hides a murky past. Jane is not the first resident to enjoy the stark lifestyle and her interest is piqued when a stranger leaves flowers at the door. Who was the girl before and will the same fate befall Jane?
This narrative uses the two women’s perspectives to draw you into the plot. The film is being directed by Ron Howard so there’s time to read the book before you see the movie. One for your travels.
This narrative uses the two women’s perspectives to draw you into the plot. The film is being directed by Ron Howard so there’s time to read the book before you see the movie. One for your travels.