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Your Neighbour's Wife
Your Neighbour's Wife
Tony Parsons | 2021 | Crime, Thriller
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
We all know that seemingly perfect family that appear to have it all but nobody knows what's going on behind closed doors; My Neighbour's Wife is a perfect example of things not being as rosy as we think and all it takes is for one mistake, albeit a massive one, and the walls come tumbling down.

I am a fan of Tony Parsons' work having read most of his series starring DC Max Wolfe and thoroughly enjoying them but this is a break from those stories but is no less enjoyable.

The story is gripping and most definitely a cautionary tale of how one "little" mistake can cause so many ripples and affect so many lives in ways you wouldn't see coming. The characters Mr Parsons creates are an interesting mixed bag of those you will love and those you will love to hate, those you will initially like and grow to dislike and the other way around - I love it when that happens!

The pace is good and there are twists, turns and red herrings that will keep you second guessing yourself and totally engrossed and I have no hesitation in recommending this to anyone who enjoys a great psychological thriller.

Thank you to Random House UK / Cornerstone and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
  
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Lee Ronaldo recommended Colour Green by Sibylle Baier in Music (curated)

 
Colour Green by Sibylle Baier
Colour Green by Sibylle Baier
2006 | Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"She’s a later discovery, a totally obscure person. I was reading about her just to prepare for this, because I’ve been listening to this record for ages, and on Wikipedia it said that somebody gave a copy to J Mascis and he gave it to someone to release it. I didn’t realise that at all, that he brought it to some record label’s attention, but that’s a record that I’ve been listening to a long time, it’s a really beautiful record I think. I have chosen Songs of Love & Hate by Leonard Cohen and Ladies of the Canyon by Joni Mitchell but this record is right in that same period of beautiful singer/songwriter records. They’re not band records, they’re personal records, they’re kind of like somebody’s journal or notebook. Those records always felt like a window opening into somebody’s life where you kind of spent an hour or forty five minutes of someone telling you about their life and the different things they see and the different ways they look at the world and if it resonated with you it became this… I just thought that Sibylle Baier was in the same canon as all those albums from that period that made an impression on me. Like early Dylan or a Nick Drake record or something. Colour Green is just as powerful for me."

Source
  
Amélie (2001)
Amélie (2001)
2001 | Comedy, Drama, International
Rich cinematic comfort food, not only am I wholly befuddled by this - but shocked at how many people don't hate it. By most means this shouldn't work let alone as remarkably as it does: it exudes any and all of the qualities that defined late 90s/early 00s Miramax-style cinema which sort of began with 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘉𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘺 and plateaued with 𝘉𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 where everyone was randomly obsessed with people doing 'adorkable' quirky things for little to no reason (i.e. painting the same Renoir piece once a year for 20 years, looking under photo booths for torn up pictures that you then put together into an extensive photo album collection [??]) and ubiquitous, fast-talking overnarration that just explains a lot of excess details that only exist to be eccentric. I myself will most certainly cop to having a huge warm spot for that sort of film - for the most part - as now we've sort of crescendoed back into the 'monotonous, stock Wikipedia article' type of film. At any rate, this was just so wonderful. An ode to the good in life with pretty much spotless dialogue, scenes that snap together like puzzle pieces, and a deservedly iconic aesthetic - the way better version of 𝘗𝘢𝘺 𝘪𝘵 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥. Audrey Tatou deserved *so* much better than slumming it in 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘢 𝘝𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘪 𝘊𝘰𝘥𝘦 after this.
  
Sanctum (Asylum, #2)
Sanctum (Asylum, #2)
Madeleine Roux | 2014 | Fiction & Poetry, Mystery, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Thriller, Young Adult (YA)
6
8.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
3.5 stars
Once again, Madeleine has kept me up way past my bedtime, scared to go to sleep with the lights off. It worries me that I felt so compelled to read Sanctum, the second book in the Asylum series, considering how much I hate being scared. But I did feel compelled and I did read the book - with the lights on, I might add. Of course, to help relieve some of my fear, I did my best to read the whole book in one sitting instead of trying to sleep with unanswered questions scrambling around inside my head. The pictures provided in Sanctum, thankfully, were a lot less creepy than those in Aslyum, though the plot left the same fearful chill. It was pretty amazing to watch everything come together and grow into something so much bigger than I could have ever imagined. Even if I hadn't been aware beforehand that there is a third book, I would immediately know that Dan's story is not over - not when he still possesses that red stone. I don't claim to be a fortune teller, but I foresee more trouble heading Dan's way and I have a feeling that stone is at the center of it. It'll be interesting to see how Madeleine intertwines more into this already complex story. I look forward to unraveling more of Daniel Crawford's mysteries.
  
Dog Days (2018)
Dog Days (2018)
2018 | Drama
Not writing this review after seeing the film was a mistake. It's only been 8 days and yet I can't remember much about it, which probably sounds like it isn't a recommendation. I know I enjoyed it, there were touching moments and funny bits. It might not change your life but it'll make you feel good.

There are lots of faces you'll recognise. Some to love and some to hate. Jon Bass is the human star of this one for me. Adorable, funny and the great double act with Gertrude is delightful. She also rocks a super cool doggy wardrobe. Mabel is probably my favourite canine character. A coach to 5k success story line that got me in the feels.

It's another one of those films that's pretty predictable though. Characters end up where you expect them to be, and the dogs (for the most part) make you smile. Nice film, but probably not worth a full price ticket.

As an after thought, there is one moment I can specifically remember, and it left me puzzled. The dog walker sets up in a client's home while he's not there and then at the end of the film she's dating the materialistic vet... was it his house? I don't remember seeing anything about it other than those two scenes and it left me confused.
  
Moana (2016)
Moana (2016)
2016 | Adventure, Animation, Comedy
Ive said it before and I'll say it again - I'm not a fan of musicals, and Moana isn't a film that's going to change my mind on that. However, as it's goes with Disney more often or not, there's plenty of good stuff here that make it an enjoyable adventure.

It has a decent and easy to follow plot, and a strong female lead for a start. The titular character is easy to like and root for, as are all the characters come to think of it. Dwayne Johnson's character Maui starts off as a douche but he's not so bad by the end.
The whole film looks incredible. The animation is bursting with colour, the water in particular looks great. There are some great set pieces that take full advantage of this - especially the neon drenched scene with Tamatoa, and the films climax looks fantastic as well.

The musical numbers just didn't do anything for me. I didn't hate any of the songs (the 'I AM MOANAAA' bit was pretty badass), but it's mostly just little too cheesy for my taste, much like Frozen was.

Overall though, Moana is a pretty good time, with a nice Disney approved moral heart, and I'm sure it will stand up alongside the many other Disney classics for years to come.