Search
Search results
Fireworks at Midnight (A Witch’s Night Out #3)
8.0
Rate It
Book
Recent college graduate and part-time cat familiar Dulcina “Sweets” Gato is having the worst New...
Paranormal Romance Novella
Blazing Minds (92 KP) rated Wonder Woman (2017) in Movies
Nov 2, 2021 (Updated Nov 3, 2021)
With Marvel already dominating the superhero movie market, Wonder Woman steps up to the plate and knocks it out the park in DC’s new movie that takes us further towards The Justice League.
So a few years ago we had Man of Steel, which had mixed reviews and was a movie that had an extremely long and all out good vs evil battle with Superman vs General Zod over Metropolis!
Then came Batman V Superman, a movie that I personally was hoping would be a version of my favourite Batman comic book, The Dark Knight Returns, sadly this was not to be and although the extended cut is a better version the film was another in the DCEU (DC Extended Universe) that had mixed reviews and a rather long good vs evil battle, it did introduce us to Wonder Woman.
Following on was the next in the franchise, Suicide Squad, again this was another movie that didn’t really go down well with movie fans, which also had a good vs evil fight at the end (I see a pattern) it certainly looked like DC had hit three strikes! So all hope rested on Wonder Woman.
So a few years ago we had Man of Steel, which had mixed reviews and was a movie that had an extremely long and all out good vs evil battle with Superman vs General Zod over Metropolis!
Then came Batman V Superman, a movie that I personally was hoping would be a version of my favourite Batman comic book, The Dark Knight Returns, sadly this was not to be and although the extended cut is a better version the film was another in the DCEU (DC Extended Universe) that had mixed reviews and a rather long good vs evil battle, it did introduce us to Wonder Woman.
Following on was the next in the franchise, Suicide Squad, again this was another movie that didn’t really go down well with movie fans, which also had a good vs evil fight at the end (I see a pattern) it certainly looked like DC had hit three strikes! So all hope rested on Wonder Woman.
Outback Sisters
Book
Cafe owner Frankie has been unlucky in love all her life. It's hard in a small town like Bunyip Bay...
David McK (3786 KP) rated Tenet (2020) in Movies
Sep 30, 2022
Massive letdown from Christopher Nolan
Christopher Nolan has a bit of a name for himself, and a bit of a following.
While I haven't seen all of his films, I have (mostly) quite enjoyed the ones I have seen - The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception, The Prestige, Insomnia, Dunkirk and Interstellar - so it's always an event when he releases a new movie.
This particular one had the mis(?)fortune to be released in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, when large gatherings put health at risk and when cinemas were struggling after being closed for months on end.
I never saw it on the big screen as a result.
Having now seen it (on Amazon Prime), I'm quite glad that I didn't pay (and put my health at risk) to see it in the cinema - honestly, I found it mostly dull, incomprehensible (in that I couldn't make out half the dialogue) and interminable in length, despite the occasional 'money-on-the-screen' sequence
If you want to see a good 'backwards' story, watch the Backwards episode of Red Dwarf (season 3, episode 1) instead.
While I haven't seen all of his films, I have (mostly) quite enjoyed the ones I have seen - The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception, The Prestige, Insomnia, Dunkirk and Interstellar - so it's always an event when he releases a new movie.
This particular one had the mis(?)fortune to be released in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, when large gatherings put health at risk and when cinemas were struggling after being closed for months on end.
I never saw it on the big screen as a result.
Having now seen it (on Amazon Prime), I'm quite glad that I didn't pay (and put my health at risk) to see it in the cinema - honestly, I found it mostly dull, incomprehensible (in that I couldn't make out half the dialogue) and interminable in length, despite the occasional 'money-on-the-screen' sequence
If you want to see a good 'backwards' story, watch the Backwards episode of Red Dwarf (season 3, episode 1) instead.
David McK (3786 KP) rated Sworn Sword (The Bloody Aftermath of 1066, #1) in Books
Jan 30, 2019 (Updated Jul 9, 2023)
About a month or so ago, I was in my local Waterstones when I spotted two books both set around the time of the Norman Invasion but telling the tale but different angles: <i>Hereward</i> and this. Humming ang haaing, I eventually decided on <i>Hereward</i> and then, later, came across this novel for sale in Tesco's picking it up there.
Of the two books, I have to say - and despite a title that sounds like a bad b-movie ('"Sworn Sword: 1066: The Aftermath!" coming soon to a theatre near you!') - this is the better. Told in first person prose, this novel is from the point of view of a Norman Knight (whereas <i>Hereward</i> was from that of an Anglo-Saxon), and reminded me very much of one of the better Bernard Cornwell books in that the history covered (albeit slighlty fictionalised to fit the demands of the story) is just as interesting as the actual plot.
The first in a series of books set in the same period, I think I will be picking up more of these!
Of the two books, I have to say - and despite a title that sounds like a bad b-movie ('"Sworn Sword: 1066: The Aftermath!" coming soon to a theatre near you!') - this is the better. Told in first person prose, this novel is from the point of view of a Norman Knight (whereas <i>Hereward</i> was from that of an Anglo-Saxon), and reminded me very much of one of the better Bernard Cornwell books in that the history covered (albeit slighlty fictionalised to fit the demands of the story) is just as interesting as the actual plot.
The first in a series of books set in the same period, I think I will be picking up more of these!
ClareR (6192 KP) rated Killing Jericho in Books
May 28, 2023
Killing Jericho was a thrilling, suspenseful ride!
Scott Jericho is back living with his traveller fairground family after a prison sentence that saw the end of his career as a CID Police Officer. He had violently attacked a Knight of Saint George - a far right thug he had been interviewing about the death of three Polish children. This also meant that he couldn’t be charged for the crime.
There’s some history of fairground travellers in this - all true, and both interesting and nice to know that we don’t call those more unusual fairground acts “freaks” anymore.
Believe it or not, Jericho has more problems than being an ex-con: he’s using drugs, has boyfriend trouble, and the man he was charged with attacking can’t seem to keep himself away.
Jericho’s life is complicated.
The murders are gruesome and really rather inventive!
And no one is as they seem, either. It’s a dark read.
There are a lot of surprises, and I enjoyed them all!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and to William Hussey for reading along too. This is the first of a new series, and I’ll be interested to know what happens to Scott Jericho next!
Scott Jericho is back living with his traveller fairground family after a prison sentence that saw the end of his career as a CID Police Officer. He had violently attacked a Knight of Saint George - a far right thug he had been interviewing about the death of three Polish children. This also meant that he couldn’t be charged for the crime.
There’s some history of fairground travellers in this - all true, and both interesting and nice to know that we don’t call those more unusual fairground acts “freaks” anymore.
Believe it or not, Jericho has more problems than being an ex-con: he’s using drugs, has boyfriend trouble, and the man he was charged with attacking can’t seem to keep himself away.
Jericho’s life is complicated.
The murders are gruesome and really rather inventive!
And no one is as they seem, either. It’s a dark read.
There are a lot of surprises, and I enjoyed them all!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and to William Hussey for reading along too. This is the first of a new series, and I’ll be interested to know what happens to Scott Jericho next!
David McK (3786 KP) rated Arthur (The Arthurian Tales #3) in Books
Jun 30, 2024 (Updated Jun 30, 2024)
This is the final entry in Giles Kristian's 'Arthurian Tales' trilogy, set after both 'Lancelot' and 'Camelot', and now told in the third person instead of the first person view of both those former works.
It's also the first one - I believe - to so heavily rely on flashbacks, paralleling the 'now' of the story with the background to one of the main characters Beran (whose identity I, personally, found quite easy to grok early on).
As a whole, I have to say, this trilogy is one of the best retellings of the Arthurian myths I have come across although retelling, however, may be too strong a word; perhaps a better on would be re-imagining as there's no mystical Green Knight (reimagined in 'Camelot'), search for the Holy Grails (again, see 'Camelot'), or mysterious women lying in ponds and distributing swords ("that's no basis for sound government..."), but which does cover the whole Arthur/Lancelot/Guinevere love triangle (see, in particular, 'Lancelot') and the fall out thereof.
In short, all three novels are well worth a read - personally, I found I enjoyed these more than the 'Blood Eye' series by the same author.
It's also the first one - I believe - to so heavily rely on flashbacks, paralleling the 'now' of the story with the background to one of the main characters Beran (whose identity I, personally, found quite easy to grok early on).
As a whole, I have to say, this trilogy is one of the best retellings of the Arthurian myths I have come across although retelling, however, may be too strong a word; perhaps a better on would be re-imagining as there's no mystical Green Knight (reimagined in 'Camelot'), search for the Holy Grails (again, see 'Camelot'), or mysterious women lying in ponds and distributing swords ("that's no basis for sound government..."), but which does cover the whole Arthur/Lancelot/Guinevere love triangle (see, in particular, 'Lancelot') and the fall out thereof.
In short, all three novels are well worth a read - personally, I found I enjoyed these more than the 'Blood Eye' series by the same author.
David McK (3786 KP) rated Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) in Movies
Nov 28, 2021 (Updated Feb 4, 2026)
Martha!
The secind entry in what-was-then the burgeoning Extended Universe, following on from 2013's Man of Steel - the finale of which (re. seemingly half of Metropolis getting destroyed) has repercussions in this.
I remember the film was also hotly anticipated, with lots of speculation on who it would adopt the graphic novel 'The Dark Knight Returns', a portion of which features a showdown between the Man of Steel and Batman.
So, this introduces Ben Affleck's (aka 'Batfleck') during the prologue.
It's also - unfortunately - the movie with the infamous 'save Martha!' scene, and with the very ineptly handed expansion of the DCEU via video clips played on a laptop.
This version of Batman also seems to have completely abandoned his famous 'no killing' rule, dispatching goons left, right and centre during several key moments of the film, while Henry Cavill's Superman still needs to, well, 'lighten up' quite a bit to be closer to how the Man of Steel is more commonly viewed.
And don't start me on Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor, or on the completely extraneous final 'Doomsday' act ...
(still, at least the Directors Cut manages to salvage it somewhat)
I remember the film was also hotly anticipated, with lots of speculation on who it would adopt the graphic novel 'The Dark Knight Returns', a portion of which features a showdown between the Man of Steel and Batman.
So, this introduces Ben Affleck's (aka 'Batfleck') during the prologue.
It's also - unfortunately - the movie with the infamous 'save Martha!' scene, and with the very ineptly handed expansion of the DCEU via video clips played on a laptop.
This version of Batman also seems to have completely abandoned his famous 'no killing' rule, dispatching goons left, right and centre during several key moments of the film, while Henry Cavill's Superman still needs to, well, 'lighten up' quite a bit to be closer to how the Man of Steel is more commonly viewed.
And don't start me on Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor, or on the completely extraneous final 'Doomsday' act ...
(still, at least the Directors Cut manages to salvage it somewhat)
Robin Hood and the Heretic Prince (Outlaw Chronicles #11)
8.0
Rate It
Book
‘Your Excellency,’ said the knight, ‘there may also be Christians in there. How can we tell...