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Ross (3284 KP) rated God of Broken Things in Books

Aug 1, 2019

God of Broken Things

Cameron Johnston | 2019 | Science Fiction/Fantasy

9.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Excellent conclusion to the duology

* I received an advance copy of this book from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review *

The second and final book in the short series (for once an author who is willing to restrict his series to two books rather than padding out to a trilogy with a low quality middle book!) continues Edrin Walker's fight for his life. Where in the first book the coward found himself accidentally returning to the city where he was banished from, and thrown into a conspiracy to destroy the city, here he is more of a willing participant.
The scarrabus (the mind-controlling parasite race) are rife in the city and Walker starts to uncover their plot. Events see him sent to hold off a fast approaching army, where he once again battles with mind-controlled mages and warriors.
The action is thick and fast in this book, and while there are some metaphysical sections, and some epic sections of exposition it keeps the reader engaged throughout.
Walker is a likeable, though thoroughly detestable selfish coward who sometimes ends up doing the right things, if not for the right reason. His magic power of mind-control is used more here than in the first book (where I felt it had been a little neglected for fear of being a Mary Sue), but not over-used and at times it wonderfully helps the story move along while his body can't allow him to be in the thick of the action.
There are twists and conflict galore in this brilliant gritty conclusion to a great story with some really strong, original characters.

Kudos

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) in Movies

Aug 5, 2019

The X-Men film we deserve

After a line of underwhelming X-Men feature films, Day of Future Past is an absolute belter, and compliments the excellent First Class as a sequel.

After becoming familiar with the characters throughout the X-Men and X2, it broke my heart when the third film failed to deliver the goods, as it seems like we wouldn't see a lot of the same actors again, especially after First Class introduced all new faces for some familiar characters.
When it was announced that DOFP would include both casts, I was so genuinely excited.
And rightly so.

This is the FOX-X-men equivalent of Infinity War. All of these characters coming together to stop a threat that fans have wanted to see on the big screen since day one - The Sentinels.
The bleak future painted is truly horrifying, as mutants are on the edge of extinction after being hunted down.
Throw is a little time travel to stop this future from ever coming to pass, and we are set with Wolverine in the 70s, with the cast of First Class.
It's a great move, and makes for a really fun setting, with high stakes to boot.
The action is plentiful and thrilling (especially the future-set fight near the end - hard to watch at times), and it's a real throwback to hear the original score from the original trilogy.

It ticks all the boxes as it plays on nostalgia, whilst giving us something new simultaneously.

It's a real treat for X-Men fans, and was for a short while, my favourite entry in the franchise (then Logan came along...)

Kudos

Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Admission (2013) in Movies

Aug 7, 2019

Admission (2013)

2013 | Comedy

6.5

(2 Ratings)

Movie Rating

What’s the secret to getting in? Everyone wants to know this at some point in their lives, and to some extent Admission has the answer.

Tina Fey plays Portia, a Princeton admmissions officer. She has a very uneventful life; she lives with her very long time boyfriend and has worked for the university for sixteen years. Things are pretty set for Portia, she even has her eye on a promotion. This is when John Pressman (Paul Rudd) calls her to come to his alternative school to meet Jerimiah (Nat Wolff) a gifted student whose past would never get him into Princeton. Out of a competitive streak to try and get the promotion she goes to John’s school. John tells Portia he thinks she is Jerimiah’s birth mother and she pulls out all the stops trying to get Jerimiah admitted, to try and fulfill his dream. Along the way sparks fly between Portia and John.

Admission is a great movie, it has some interesting ideas about parenting and life in general. Tina Fey is totally believable as the woman in a rut who gets dumped and rebounds into a completely different life. Rudd is a wonderfully refreshing blend of a nice guy who makes, and can admit to making, mistakes. Perhaps my favorite character was Portia’s mother, Susannah (Lily Tomlin). Her take on feminist beliefs was hilarious. The story is solid too, for the most part. I would have questioned some things Portia just let slide. Other than that; its tale of growth, both tennager and adult is excellent.

So what’s the secret to getting in? Buy a movie ticket and find out.