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Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
1977 | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi

"A beautifully done movie that now, unfortunately, tragically, as a parent you watch and has a very troubling ending. But I have to say as a kid when I saw it and I was unburdened with having my own children, it was absolutely transporting and, again, an incredibly subtle piece of work. Richard Dreyfuss and Teri Garr’s relationship falling apart, and Melinda Dillon’s journey… It’s full of wonderful, subtle acting in a movie that a lot of people thought was about spectacle, and it’s so not. And you can see the enormous influence that that movie had on all the big sci-fi movies after it. Nobody has quite duplicated the amazing sound design on it. People have tried — I mean that movie Twister, there were moments in it I looked around and was going “They’re totally doing Close Encounters.” People can try it, and try to mix that reality with the more spectacular stuff, but people have a very hard time achieving it. It’s really a very simple story. He believes something that his wife doesn’t believe. But it’s done so kitchen-sink and perfect and so influenced by the films of the ’70s with the overlapping dialogue and a very vérité sort of style to it. Also, when Spielberg wants to put on a show, he really can."

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Shadow Thief (Flirting with Monsters, #1)
Shadow Thief (Flirting with Monsters, #1)
Eva Chase | 2020 | Paranormal, Romance
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
DNF @ 56%
Contains spoilers, click to show
This starts with Sorsha breaking into a big house where she knows the owner has a collection of creatures in his exhibition room. Shadow creatures that need dark to escape but are kept under blinding lights. Sorsha breaks them all out and is shocked the next morning to find three of them waiting in her kitchen wanting to do her a favour back for freeing them. They also seek her help in freeing their boss from the band of humans who took him - and possibly the same group who tried to take Sorcha's "aunt" many years ago.

I did struggle a little with this one right from the start. I never really got into the storyline but I decided to carry on, thinking the action at the start might continue throughout but it was few and far between.

The description had me intrigued and I don't mind reverse harem books but up to the point i got to (56%) Sorsha had only slept with one of the three demons - the incubus - and was secretly lusting after the other two while trying to hunt down the people who had taken the demons' boss but it was going so slowly... I was bored. I was finding other things to do; buying other kindle books, watching tv instead of being engrossed in this. It just wasn't working for me.
  
Getting Doug with High
Getting Doug with High
Comedy
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Podcast Rating
Cool celebrity guests (2 more)
Very educational
They're smoking weed man!!! Its awesome
Best show EVER!!!!!!
I was cruising through the amazballs app Tubi Tv when I came across this little gem... Mind you, I do smoke a shit ton of weed myself... And it is legal now in my whole country, so fuck it... Lol.
Doug Benson is someone I've seen on talk shows and heard on podcasts a few times, but I never knew much about him.
This little piece of click bait lured me in with the chance of seeing one of my favorite writer/directors Kevin Smith getting blazed up with Doug and Brian Poshien... Or however you spell it... And it didn't let me down.
He and his guests get just obliterated off some of the sweetest strains of bud made available by whatever weed store they happen to propagate. And they always tell you what the pot is like. Effects... Length of buzz... That sort of pertenate information stoners like myself want to know.
Plus its a chance to see Jeff Ross, Natasha Leggerio and Anthony Jeselnyk HIGH AS GIRAFFE BALLS.
Overall its 45 minutes that is filled with talking, coughing and laughter... Very reminiscent of nights spent in my mom's kitchen with my friends, sitting around the table smoking our heads off and laughing til the sun came up.
Ah the memor... Wait.... What????
  
A Book Club to Die For
A Book Club to Die For
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Exclusive Book Clubs Lead to Murder
Tru Becket has been invited to speak at the exclusive Arete Society, a book club that has waiting lists to join. In fact, her friend Flossie is one of those waiting to get in, and she has come with Tru in order to plead her case. The meeting winds up being canceled, however, when Tru finds the group’s president dead in the kitchen. The police think that Hazel, this month’s hostess, snapped and killed the victim, but Tru doesn’t think so. Can she come up with an alternative suspect?

This book is a variation on the locked room mystery, and I have come to realize how much I enjoyed those added twists to the story. A couple of things were obvious early on, but overall, this was still a compelling mystery with suspects strong enough to keep you engaged. The series regulars are all here and are fantastic as well. There are some regulars who can get annoying, but they were kept in the background and added to the fun. And this book is fun. I laughed more than I had at the first two. One sub-plot in particular made me laugh every time it popped up. If you are looking for a light mystery, this is one you’ll enjoy.
  
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Merissa (11805 KP) rated Surrounded by Silence (The Rescuer #2) in Books

Nov 25, 2020 (Updated Aug 14, 2023)  
Surrounded by Silence (The Rescuer #2)
Surrounded by Silence (The Rescuer #2)
Eric Huffbind | 2020 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
SURROUNDED BY SILENCE is the second book in The Rescuer series and while it does feature some of the characters from the first book, can be read as a standalone because the issues raised are discussed in this book.

Sam has reached rock bottom and has realised that for all his billions, he can't buy happiness. He reaches out to the one person he thinks can help and manages to convince him. That is how Sam ends up working in a Soup Kitchen.

I enjoyed this book so much more than the first (sorry, Mr Huffbind!) The writing style is not as stilted and flowed more naturally. The dialogue was more believable and the "I love you's" weren't bandied around as quickly or as often.

The terror that Sam feels toward the end of the book comes across clearly and was extremely well written. The whole problem with learning ASL was also easy to read. As someone who was learning BSL, I know how daunting it can be but also how rewarding.

All in all, this book was completely enjoyable and I have no hesitation in recommending it.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Nov 25, 2020
  
Unearthly Stranger  (1964)
Unearthly Stranger (1964)
1964 | Romance, Sci-Fi
6
5.0 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Slightly bonkers British sci-fi B-movie isn't quite as good as some people would have you believe, but scores heavily for sheer weirdness, ingenuity, and the cult credentials of its cast. A project to achieve spaceship-free space-travel by unlocking the hidden powers of the human brain is being hampered by the fact that anyone who makes a breakthrough turns up dead with their brain exploded from the inside - could there possibly be foul play involved? Top boffins Davidson and Lancaster think so, but their investigations lead them to Davidson's beautiful new wife, who is a whizz in the kitchen but has no pulse, never blinks, and scares off small children at a hundred paces...

Dingbat attempt at knocking off Quatermass and Village of the Damned; may be a very distant ancestor of films like Under the Skin, but not the kind they talk about. Once you get past all the silliness, which is actually delivered with impressive conviction ('May I come to your house and anaesthetise your wife, so we can see if she is real or an illusion?'), there are a few reasonably eerie moments and curious insights into 60s gender politics - the viewpoint throughout is that of middle-aged white guys, with the women all wives or secretaries. The film is too daft for its sexist overtones to be really offensive. By no means a great movie but fun to watch if you're in the right mood.
  
TH
The Heart (Ice Dragons Hockey, #2)
RJ Scott | 2017
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Heart is the second book in the Ice Dragons Hockey series, and we reunite with Alex, aka Simba. Some time has passed since the end of The Code and the Dragons are on a losing streak. Alex calls for a meeting which goes on until early hours of the morning. On his way home, he and Ryan spot a car accident, and Alex is able to save both the baby and her father, although he is injured in the process. Jo is a firefighter on probation and the one who saves Alex.

This is a great story, with a humorous start in the kitchen between Jo and Alex. Jo has her own reasons for not wanting a relationship, the same as Alex does, but that doesn't stop them from being attracted to each other, and wanting more. There is an air of suspense with this book too as Jo has to deal with different situations all connected by a bomb. With additional stories involving Gooley, and the twins, there is definitely something here for everyone.

Very well written, with no editing or grammatical errors to disrupt the reading flow, this is a wonderful addition to the series. Definitely recommended by me, and I'm looking forward to Gooley's story which is coming next.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
A Batter of Life and Death
A Batter of Life and Death
Ellie Alexander | 2015 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Murderous Contest
It’s autumn, which means that tourist season is winding down in Ashland, Oregon. Fortunately, The Pastry Channel has come to town to film the newest season of Take the Cake. They’ve asked Jules Capshaw to use Torte’s kitchen as a location some of the contestants use to prepare their pastries. Then they ask Jules to be a last-minute contestant. She’s thrilled until she finds Chef Marco, one of the other contestants, dead before the first day of filming. Since she is part of the show, she can’t help but learn things about her fellow contestants. Can she figure out which one is a killer?

It’s been too long since I read the first book in the series, but I was quickly back in Jules’s world with this fun second in the series. The pacing was a bit off at times, but overall there is an enjoyable mystery with plenty of secrets for Jules to uncover. The suspects are good and do their part to keep us guessing. Jules has some personal stuff she is trying to work through, and I enjoyed seeing the growth in her here. This book really made me want to visit Ashland at some point in the future. We get seven recipes at the end for a wide variety of things. It’s easy to see why this series is so popular. I need to pick up the next soon.
  
Tic-Tac-Mistletoe (Hartbridge Christmas #1)
Tic-Tac-Mistletoe (Hartbridge Christmas #1)
N.R. Walker | 2020 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
10
10.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
TIC-TAC-MISTLETOE is the first book in the Hartbridge Christmas series and, honestly, this belongs on the Hallmark Channel. The book itself says so too!

Hamish is travelling from Australia to his sister's for Christmas - and the next two years. However, nothing has gone right for him, and he ends up going headfirst into a snowbank. Luckily for him, he is rescued by the local hardware shop owner, Ren. They click instantly but spend time trying to understand just what is going on, and how it will work when Ren is going to Mossley to be with his sister.

This is a low-angst full-of-Christmas-spirit book that will definitely give you the warm fuzzies! I loved Ren and Hamish together, together with Chutney the dog. I loved the TV references and how Ren and Hamish made it 'their thing'. We hear the back story of both of them, without it being an info dump.

Honestly? I have nothing bad to say. I would LOVE for Hallmark to grab this up and make a dream come true! A warm, fuzzy, cookies in the kitchen, sweet Christmas story that I adored. Absolutely recommended by me.

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Knot What You Think
Knot What You Think
Mary Marks | 2017 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Discovering a Dead Body is Complicated
Martha Rose is looking forward to a typical Tuesday quilting session with her friends until Jazz, the latest member of the group, shows up. As Jazz describes his morning, everyone begins to worry about the friend he was trying to see earlier in the morning. When they go to investigate, they find the body of Dolleen Doyle on her kitchen floor. Dolleen is the second wife of a man currently in jail for running a Ponzi scheme. With the police looking at Jazz as their prime suspect, Martha begins to investigate. Can she find the real killer?

Those familiar with the series will know what to expect here, and they won’t be disappointed. The plot is complex with several twists before Martha pieces the clues together. I do wish we hadn’t had the scenes with the psychic, but that’s a minor complaint. I enjoy the characters since they are different for a cozy series, and I appreciate how their lives are evolving as the series progresses. The suspects are just as sharp and interesting. While the Los Angeles setting is unusual for a cozy, as a native, I enjoy it, and the book still feels cozy. There’s a nice dose of humor as well, and I can’t wait to see how what happens next to Martha after the way this book ended. If you are looking for a fun cozy series, this is definitely one to check out.