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No Lawyers in Heaven [Audiobook]
No Lawyers in Heaven [Audiobook]
Henry Milner | 2022 | Biography, Crime, Law
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I read and listen a lot of crime books and I thought it would be interesting to listen to something a bit different and I wasn't disappointed.

This is a glimpse into the life of a criminal defence lawyer and whilst this might sound a bit heavy going, let me reassure you it is not. It's an interesting insight into side of the defence with lots of humour thrown in. The cases discussed might be familiar to some, especially if you're in the UK, and some of the alleged criminals defended by Mr Milner are 'household names'.

This is not a sensationalised or in depth look into the alleged crimes committed but rather an account of a man who clearly cares about the law and everyone's right to be represented regardless of their guilt or innocence.

Mr Milner made what could have a been a very dry subject come to life all helped by the excellent narration of Mark Elstob whose voice was absolutely perfect for this book and my thanks must go to W.F. Howes Ltd and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to No Lawyers in Heaven and share my thoughts.
  
Brothers and Sisters
Brothers and Sisters
Ariel Andrés Almada | 2022 | Children
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Are you looking for a warm-felt book for your child or children that shows the strong bond created between brothers and sisters? Well, this book “Brothers and Sisters” does just that. It shows it through the eyes of a little boy.

Your child can imagine themselves as the little boy with their siblings as Sisters having a bond with their brother and sister or just their sisters if that is what they have. Or just their brothers if that is all she has, or he has.

Parents will enjoy this book as it shows that siblings fight, but there is also that bond of love for every sibling as they get older. The picture is lovely. I enjoyed looking at the pictures and enjoying myself. I was able to see my cousins with their siblings being somewhat like this. I, at this point, did have some step-siblings and still cherish that.

This book is excellent for parents to have in the family home if they have quite a few children in their household. This book may help with what goes on with siblings, or you may have experience with siblings of your own.
  
Murder Takes the Stage
Murder Takes the Stage
Colleen Cambridge | 2024 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A Brutal Crime
A producer is interested in turning one of Agatha Christie’s stories into a play, so housekeeper Phyllida Bright has reluctantly returned to London. She’s hoping she can stay in the rented house supervising the household staff. But that’s before Archibald Allston is found dead in an armchair on stage, and Phyllida is asked to figure out if foul play was involved. She grows more suspicious when the actor playing Benvolio in a production of Romeo and Juliette is bludgeoned to death on the balcony the next day. Can Phyllida discover what is happening before another death occurs?

Fans will know we’ve been given hints about Phyllida’s past before, but we get some answers in this book, which I enjoyed. Enough of the staff come along for the trip, so that part feels like a normal part of the series. And I’m curious to see what some of the developments mean for future books. The mystery was a little focused on events over actual deduction, but there was still enough here to keep me entertained. The ending, while being a little over dramatic, was also satisfying. Fans will be happy with this entry in the series.
  
The Night Sitter (2019)
The Night Sitter (2019)
2019 |
7
4.0 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Story: The Night Sitter starts when a con-artist Amber (Dufour) poses as a babysitter for her latest job, she finds a wealthy occult enthusiast child Kevin (Champion) to babysit for the night, along with his father’s new girlfriend son Ronnie (Campbell).

With Amber setting up her plan with her partners in crime Rod (Rivers), Lindsey (Neukum) and her over-protective stalker who thinks he is her boyfriend Martin (Larmore), the boys enter the relic room and unwittingly release three witches upon the household.

 

Thoughts on The Night Sitter

 

Characters – Amber is a con-artist that poses as a babysitter for her latest job, she has the experience to trick the adult into believing she is qualified for the job and keeps the kids occupied enough to prepare for her robbery. She remains calm however many obstacles get thrown in her way including her partner bring his girlfriend, her stalker boyfriend and obsessed man from across the road. Kevin is the son from the house, he isn’t willing to get overly involved in searching around the house, he doesn’t want to be friends with Ronnie and spends time trying to prove the witches are real. Rod is the criminal partner, he brings his girlfriend on the latest job which shows him being a slacker when it comes to the jobs. Lindsey is the girlfriend of Rod’s she comes dressed like a cat burglar getting into the role of criminal thief, willing to get involved in everything going on.

Performances – Elyse Dufour in the leading role is the strongest of the cast, she shows the calm required while keeping her character in control through the night. Jack Champion is the young actor playing one of the children, he brings the nervous innocence needed for this film. Jermain Rivers does get a lot of the comedy to do with his character being the dumb one in the criminal act. Each actor does give their character enough to be a standout.

Story – The story here follows a con-artist working on her latest job which turns into a nightmare when three witches are released into the house searching for their latest victims. This is a story with plenty going on, in other films this hasn’t worked, for this one it does, the kids are troublesome like you would imagine, the criminal characters bring the laughs, which has moments that feel like we are watching the Home Alone thieves and once we add the witches into the mix, everything ties together effortlessly. If you have seen Annabelle Comes Home, you can see certain similarities, though this movie was made first before anyone thinks I am calling it a copy, having the household needing to deal with hauntings from a secret room, shows that this could be compared.

Comedy/Horror – The comedy in the film comes from criminals for the most part, with them not having everything going to plan, the horror comes from witches that have started to haunt the members of the household for the night.

Settings – The film is set in the one location of the house that has the occult material inside, they become trapped which plays into the idea of what the horror is coming for them.

Special Effects – The effects in the film are great, we get to see the blood covered moments that the witches put on their victims.


Scene of the Movie – Heading down to the basement.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – Martin the character, mostly because he changes through the whole film, starting nervous, turning into the ass by the end.

Final Thoughts – This is a fun horror comedy that will get a couple of laughs, while giving us the blood needing for the witches getting the blood needed.

 

Overall: Three Witches, One Solution, Enjoy.
  
The Beguiled
The Beguiled
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
“A classic slice of Southern Gothic, shot through with psychological suspense, which is the basis for Sofia Coppola’s (winner of Best Director at Cannes) 2017 film of the same name starring Nicola Kidman, Colin Farrell and Kirsten Dunst”. Source: wiki/The_Beguiled_(2017_film).

The book was originally written with the title A Painted Devil and some of you eagle-eyed readers and film fanatics may also remember this was a film starring Clint Eastwood and Geraldine Page in the ’70s. The maid in the latter film and this 1966 novel, was black and there was also another bi-racial character, too. However, in the new film, mentioned above, this bi-racial character was played by Kirsten Dunst. This totally ruined the whole point of the book that the black woman was really a slave in their household and the bi-racial woman (who was a free woman) could not seem to see that she herself was not truly white. And that, dear readers, is a very relevant part of the original book, why change it? (Rolls eyes). Is it so wrong to portray this black woman exactly how the author intended her to be? The way I see it, what she did in that house was her way of surviving. It’s an integral part of the story. Why hide it?

After all, if you look at the underage sex and the way the main male character acts by taking advantage of his position in a household full of young girls who are basically shut away from society, should he also be seen as wrong? These young girls are easy prey, but some, are also very willing to learn… Incidentally, I must say the heat and sexual tension within the book is superbly done.

I found parts of the way this was written to be a little repetitive and confusing in style, despite this, it was still a great story. It’s only told from the girls’ perspective, which in many ways adds to this atmospheric, hothouse of lies and deceit the further into the story you delve.


The Beguiled is chock full with a Gothic sense of foreboding and unease, set against a backdrop of the Civil War, which made for some serious, ghostly tension. Who is this injured solider who turns up on their doorstep? How can these girls protect themselves from this seductive man when they have no idea what life is like outside the four walls of the house they live in?

If you read right to the end you’ll find out the brilliant twist of fate this story has in store for you. A devious surprise!