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The Blessing Way (Leaphorn & Chee, #1)
7.0
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From New York Times bestselling author Tony Hillerman, the first novel in his series featuring...
Alex (Alex #1)
6.0
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Alex is twenty and confused. He always is. The world presses on him with its horrors and pain, with...
Psychological Thriller
Ross (3284 KP) rated Perfect Death in Books
Sep 28, 2018
Contains spoilers, click to show
I have debated with myself over a rating for this, the third in the "DI Luc Callanach" series of Edinburgh police procedurals. While the overall story is definitely a 4 star, verging on 5, certain aspects of the dialogue in this one were a little jarring at times, and the plot hinged on a couple of very out of character decisions on the part of the murderer.
As with the previous two books, we join the story at the start of two independent investigations, which inevitably expand and take up the whole team's efforts (it's almost as if there was no crime in the city before these came along as no other cases seem to be mentioned or worked on!). We have the apparent death by misadventure of a young girl on the hills around Arthur's Seat, and the apparent suicide of former DCI Begbie.
Both cases are interesting and very different, the former being a more typical murder investigation, the latter being more focused on police corruption and the Glasgow gangland (I do enjoy the fact that any nasty gangsters in these Edinburgh-based stories have to be based in Glasgow, almost like they are sponsored by the Edinburgh tourist board, or someone with an anti-East Coast agenda).
While the murder investigation is decent, a number of clangers really spoiled it for me. We have a young man who appears to be poisoning people after having ingratiated themselves into their lives and the lives of their loved ones under different false names. However, as is so often the case in these stories, the killer is made too clever to be caught (at least too clever to be caught in under 300 pages!), and so the slightest mistake or piece of luck is what the investigation hinges on. Here it transpires that, while the killer has used false names in every interaction, in one of them he seems to have for some reason used the name of someone who leads the police directly to his backstory and hence uncovering his real identity. This piece of Batman vs Superman ("Your Mom was called Martha?!") level plot pivot was just so jarring and so out of character for this supposedly clever murderer. And yet without it there was pretty much no way of the murderer being found. For a secret poisoner to then start waving a gun around was also a bit hard to accept.
And also, all characters seem to be very well spoken. We have a young man who grew up in care homes from the age of 5, a Glasgow gangster and his henchmen and numerous bad sorts along the way and all are very well spoken, to the point that none of them have a voice and are just ... there. And, of course everyone refers to the police in the same way as the police refer to themselves - I cannot imagine anyone referring to a policeman as "DI something" or ""your DCI said this". It just totally jars and again comes across as the author simply inserting their voice into the mouths of characters that they could not be bothered to properly consider.
This brings me on to the dialogue gripe. I have always struggled to accept the formality in the way fictional detectives speak to members of the public. I get that interviews etc have to be carried out in a certain way, but at one point DCI Turner is speaking to a 17 year old boy about the death of his mother and she says "I cannot leave someone who might be a danger to themselves without establishing first-hand contact". This just struck me as the author inserting a piece of research into dialogue rather than considering how that point would be addressed in a human conversation. Similarly, at one point a DC refers to one of the victims as "she" and Callanach snapped at her "We use victims' names not pronouns", which just struck me as an odd thing to say, and at several times throughout the book he himself refers to victims with pronouns.
And finally, while there was never a great deal of swearing in the first two books, it was believable swearing. Here we have the occasional use of "frigging" instead of the other "f" word, which I cannot think I have ever heard a Scottish person say, unless singing along to the Sex Pistols sea shanty.
Overall, I give this book 4 stars for the plot, 3 stars for the writing, then averaged out and rounded down for the annoying little things.
A definite step down from the second book, and a more slapdash feel to it.
As with the previous two books, we join the story at the start of two independent investigations, which inevitably expand and take up the whole team's efforts (it's almost as if there was no crime in the city before these came along as no other cases seem to be mentioned or worked on!). We have the apparent death by misadventure of a young girl on the hills around Arthur's Seat, and the apparent suicide of former DCI Begbie.
Both cases are interesting and very different, the former being a more typical murder investigation, the latter being more focused on police corruption and the Glasgow gangland (I do enjoy the fact that any nasty gangsters in these Edinburgh-based stories have to be based in Glasgow, almost like they are sponsored by the Edinburgh tourist board, or someone with an anti-East Coast agenda).
While the murder investigation is decent, a number of clangers really spoiled it for me. We have a young man who appears to be poisoning people after having ingratiated themselves into their lives and the lives of their loved ones under different false names. However, as is so often the case in these stories, the killer is made too clever to be caught (at least too clever to be caught in under 300 pages!), and so the slightest mistake or piece of luck is what the investigation hinges on. Here it transpires that, while the killer has used false names in every interaction, in one of them he seems to have for some reason used the name of someone who leads the police directly to his backstory and hence uncovering his real identity. This piece of Batman vs Superman ("Your Mom was called Martha?!") level plot pivot was just so jarring and so out of character for this supposedly clever murderer. And yet without it there was pretty much no way of the murderer being found. For a secret poisoner to then start waving a gun around was also a bit hard to accept.
And also, all characters seem to be very well spoken. We have a young man who grew up in care homes from the age of 5, a Glasgow gangster and his henchmen and numerous bad sorts along the way and all are very well spoken, to the point that none of them have a voice and are just ... there. And, of course everyone refers to the police in the same way as the police refer to themselves - I cannot imagine anyone referring to a policeman as "DI something" or ""your DCI said this". It just totally jars and again comes across as the author simply inserting their voice into the mouths of characters that they could not be bothered to properly consider.
This brings me on to the dialogue gripe. I have always struggled to accept the formality in the way fictional detectives speak to members of the public. I get that interviews etc have to be carried out in a certain way, but at one point DCI Turner is speaking to a 17 year old boy about the death of his mother and she says "I cannot leave someone who might be a danger to themselves without establishing first-hand contact". This just struck me as the author inserting a piece of research into dialogue rather than considering how that point would be addressed in a human conversation. Similarly, at one point a DC refers to one of the victims as "she" and Callanach snapped at her "We use victims' names not pronouns", which just struck me as an odd thing to say, and at several times throughout the book he himself refers to victims with pronouns.
And finally, while there was never a great deal of swearing in the first two books, it was believable swearing. Here we have the occasional use of "frigging" instead of the other "f" word, which I cannot think I have ever heard a Scottish person say, unless singing along to the Sex Pistols sea shanty.
Overall, I give this book 4 stars for the plot, 3 stars for the writing, then averaged out and rounded down for the annoying little things.
A definite step down from the second book, and a more slapdash feel to it.
Darren (1599 KP) rated Dark Crimes (2018) in Movies
Jul 25, 2019
Story: Dark Crimes starts when Tadek (Carrey) still investigating the murder of a police officer, gets a new lead when Kozlov (Csokas) writes a new book which has an eerily similarity to the murder, leading him to take a dangerous road investigating the murder, which includes challenge the former girlfriend Kasia (Gainsbourg).
The investigation has plenty of ties to the secret sex club known as the cage, where the men get to do whatever they want to the women, Tadek must put his professional and person life on the line to get to the bottom of this investigations.
Thoughts on Dark Crimes
Characters – Tadek is a police officer, he is preparing for retirement (I think) only he wants to solve one final case, which involves the murder of a fellow officer, he goes down dangerous paths which put his career on the line, his marriage on the line, hoping to find the answers. Kozlov is an author that has written a book that sounds too similar to the unsolved case, he becomes the target of the investigation because of his history with the known sex club. Kasia is a former worker in the club, she does have a connection to Kozlov and the victim.
Performances – Jim Carrey is an actor that I like seeing him doing serious roles, sadly, this is one of his worst performances in a long time, he can keep the accent up jumping around all over the place. Marton Csokas usually does well in film, but because the character isn’t very interesting, he struggles to keep our attention. Charlotte Gainsbourg disappoints too, she does everything we expect her to without making the impact.
Story – The story follows a detective that is investigating the murder of a fellow officer that could have found the confession inside a novel, which leads him to target the author in search for the truth. The problem here is we get slow moving conversations which don’t go anywhere, we don’t get into the evidence of the case, it just seems to be watching one man starting to go too far in his search. The case doesn’t seem long enough to make feature film story either.
Crime – The crime side of the film follows the investigation into the murder of a police officer which might be opened up again, it never feels urgent either.
Settings – The film uses the settings to show how the club could be easily accessed without needing to be too far away.
Scene of the Movie – Nothing.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The dragging story.
Final Thoughts – This is one of the worst crime stories because it just never feels like the case is that important.
Overall: Just a drag.
The investigation has plenty of ties to the secret sex club known as the cage, where the men get to do whatever they want to the women, Tadek must put his professional and person life on the line to get to the bottom of this investigations.
Thoughts on Dark Crimes
Characters – Tadek is a police officer, he is preparing for retirement (I think) only he wants to solve one final case, which involves the murder of a fellow officer, he goes down dangerous paths which put his career on the line, his marriage on the line, hoping to find the answers. Kozlov is an author that has written a book that sounds too similar to the unsolved case, he becomes the target of the investigation because of his history with the known sex club. Kasia is a former worker in the club, she does have a connection to Kozlov and the victim.
Performances – Jim Carrey is an actor that I like seeing him doing serious roles, sadly, this is one of his worst performances in a long time, he can keep the accent up jumping around all over the place. Marton Csokas usually does well in film, but because the character isn’t very interesting, he struggles to keep our attention. Charlotte Gainsbourg disappoints too, she does everything we expect her to without making the impact.
Story – The story follows a detective that is investigating the murder of a fellow officer that could have found the confession inside a novel, which leads him to target the author in search for the truth. The problem here is we get slow moving conversations which don’t go anywhere, we don’t get into the evidence of the case, it just seems to be watching one man starting to go too far in his search. The case doesn’t seem long enough to make feature film story either.
Crime – The crime side of the film follows the investigation into the murder of a police officer which might be opened up again, it never feels urgent either.
Settings – The film uses the settings to show how the club could be easily accessed without needing to be too far away.
Scene of the Movie – Nothing.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The dragging story.
Final Thoughts – This is one of the worst crime stories because it just never feels like the case is that important.
Overall: Just a drag.
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated The Vanishing Season in Books
Mar 19, 2020
Ellery Hathaway is the only female police officer in Woodbury, Massachusetts. She's also the only one on the force who believes Woodbury has a serial killer--one who is picking off people every July. Ellery was once Abby Hathaway, who was kidnapped at fourteen in a very famous case: she was the seventeenth victim of serial killer Francis Coben. And the only one who lived. Now Ellery is convinced these people in Woodbury--who are going missing around her birthday--are tied to her own incident. So she calls the only person she can think of: Reed Markham, the FBI agent who rescued her from the Coben's closet all those years ago. But Reed is battling his own issues. While Ellery's case--and the subsequent book he wrote--made him famous, he's on forced leave after messing up an investigation, and his wife has kicked him out. His most famous moment revolves around Ellery, but did he truly save her? And now they both are about to be sucked back into the case.
Wow, what an excellent start to a series! I loved this book and was drawn immediately to Ellery ("Ellie") and Reed! They are a dynamic duo, with a truly complicated history, and this was a compelling page-turner from the beginning. Schaffhausen has an easy writing style that brings Ellie and Reed to life (along with Ellie's awesome hound dog "Bump"), and I sped through the book in a couple of hours.
"Ellie knew 'touched' could mean gifted or insane. Maybe she was both. But she wasn't wrong, and if anyone out there was ever going to believe her, it was Reed Markham. Because he'd been touched once too."
The story is a dynamic one, tying back to Ellie's original kidnapping, but working in present-day disappearances in the town where she's escaped. Ellie is desperately trying to start over: no one on her police force knows about her old life. (This is the one thing that seems a little crazy--how did that background check fly? And how does she get so far along in these new cases without spilling the beans?)
Still, I'm willing to overlook it, because this is a captivating dark read that keeps you guessing. I figured out a few things here and there, but it in no way diminished my interest. The dynamics between Ellie and Reed are sizzling, and the twists and turns exciting. I love a good mystery/police procedural, and this one did not disappoint. It's deep and creepy, with a powerful lead female character, and I cannot wait to read the next two books! (I finished this book three days ago, and I'm already in the middle of the third book, just to illustrate how much I enjoy this series!) 4 stars.
Wow, what an excellent start to a series! I loved this book and was drawn immediately to Ellery ("Ellie") and Reed! They are a dynamic duo, with a truly complicated history, and this was a compelling page-turner from the beginning. Schaffhausen has an easy writing style that brings Ellie and Reed to life (along with Ellie's awesome hound dog "Bump"), and I sped through the book in a couple of hours.
"Ellie knew 'touched' could mean gifted or insane. Maybe she was both. But she wasn't wrong, and if anyone out there was ever going to believe her, it was Reed Markham. Because he'd been touched once too."
The story is a dynamic one, tying back to Ellie's original kidnapping, but working in present-day disappearances in the town where she's escaped. Ellie is desperately trying to start over: no one on her police force knows about her old life. (This is the one thing that seems a little crazy--how did that background check fly? And how does she get so far along in these new cases without spilling the beans?)
Still, I'm willing to overlook it, because this is a captivating dark read that keeps you guessing. I figured out a few things here and there, but it in no way diminished my interest. The dynamics between Ellie and Reed are sizzling, and the twists and turns exciting. I love a good mystery/police procedural, and this one did not disappoint. It's deep and creepy, with a powerful lead female character, and I cannot wait to read the next two books! (I finished this book three days ago, and I'm already in the middle of the third book, just to illustrate how much I enjoy this series!) 4 stars.
Gareth von Kallenbach (977 KP) rated Hostage (2005) in Movies
Aug 14, 2019
Chief of Police Jeff Talley (Bruce Willis) is a man filled with turmoil. A former S.W.A.T. officer and top hostage negotiator for the Los Angeles Police Department, Talley now toils away in a quite California town where crime is light and very infrequent. The change in locales was made necessary for Jeff in the aftermath of a hostage negotiation where things did not go accordingly leaving Jeff with more questions than answers.
As if this is not bad enough, Talley is having difficulties with his wife Jane (Serena Scott Thomas), and his daughter Amanda (Rumer Willis), who is not happy with their relocation to the quiet locale or the strain that is amongst her parents as it is clear that they still love each other very much.
The quiet town is disrupted when a robbery of a successful locale business man goes horribly wrong and ends up with a dead police officer and three hostages being held in a high tech, high security home.
Jeff responds to the incident and soon finds himself dealing with the three young men who are clearly in over their head and very dangerous due to the instability of the situation. Jeff decides to call in the Sheriff’s office as he believe his police force is not suited for this sort of situation and essentially decides to wash his hands of the situation and go home.
While driving home, Jeff is carjacked by a group of individuals who show Jeff that they have taken his wife and daughter hostage and instruct him not to let anyone in or out of the house where the hostage crisis is taking place. Jeff is also instructed to not deviate in any way from his instructions under pain of immediate death for his wife and daughter. His only communication with his new handlers will be via a cell phone, and he is to resume control of the negotiations.
It is learned that there is something in the house that the people holding Jeff’s family need and are willing to resort to very extreme measure to get it.
It is at this point that the very, very gripping and entertaining setup to the film begins to slide, as the second half of the film does not come close to matching the quality of the opening segments.
There are some very good cat and mouse moments as the men in the house start to argue amongst themselves, and interact with the family inside the house. The supporting performances are solid especially those of Jennifer (Michelle Horn), who plays the daughter held captive by the trio and the eerie performance of Ben Foster as the twisted Hostage taker Mars.
Sadly the film decides to turn to a series of brutal images and sequences rather than continue to develop the characters and work the story. The characters often embark on some inane courses of action and do things that not only contradict what we know about their characters but also fly into the lapse of logic as people in their situations would never do. I would love to expand on this by referencing a segment of the film but in the interest of not spoiling the film, I will explain it as when characters are told not to do something, why would they repeatedly do it, and then continue to do so without any consequences?
It is the continued lack of common sense and the and the very over the top and lazy finale to the film that sinks what could have and should have been a much better movie as the film is clearly sunk by the awful final 40 minutes of the show. Willis does a solid job with his role but the last act of the script let him down as even a star of his magnitude and talents cant make up for the films numerous shortcomings.
As if this is not bad enough, Talley is having difficulties with his wife Jane (Serena Scott Thomas), and his daughter Amanda (Rumer Willis), who is not happy with their relocation to the quiet locale or the strain that is amongst her parents as it is clear that they still love each other very much.
The quiet town is disrupted when a robbery of a successful locale business man goes horribly wrong and ends up with a dead police officer and three hostages being held in a high tech, high security home.
Jeff responds to the incident and soon finds himself dealing with the three young men who are clearly in over their head and very dangerous due to the instability of the situation. Jeff decides to call in the Sheriff’s office as he believe his police force is not suited for this sort of situation and essentially decides to wash his hands of the situation and go home.
While driving home, Jeff is carjacked by a group of individuals who show Jeff that they have taken his wife and daughter hostage and instruct him not to let anyone in or out of the house where the hostage crisis is taking place. Jeff is also instructed to not deviate in any way from his instructions under pain of immediate death for his wife and daughter. His only communication with his new handlers will be via a cell phone, and he is to resume control of the negotiations.
It is learned that there is something in the house that the people holding Jeff’s family need and are willing to resort to very extreme measure to get it.
It is at this point that the very, very gripping and entertaining setup to the film begins to slide, as the second half of the film does not come close to matching the quality of the opening segments.
There are some very good cat and mouse moments as the men in the house start to argue amongst themselves, and interact with the family inside the house. The supporting performances are solid especially those of Jennifer (Michelle Horn), who plays the daughter held captive by the trio and the eerie performance of Ben Foster as the twisted Hostage taker Mars.
Sadly the film decides to turn to a series of brutal images and sequences rather than continue to develop the characters and work the story. The characters often embark on some inane courses of action and do things that not only contradict what we know about their characters but also fly into the lapse of logic as people in their situations would never do. I would love to expand on this by referencing a segment of the film but in the interest of not spoiling the film, I will explain it as when characters are told not to do something, why would they repeatedly do it, and then continue to do so without any consequences?
It is the continued lack of common sense and the and the very over the top and lazy finale to the film that sinks what could have and should have been a much better movie as the film is clearly sunk by the awful final 40 minutes of the show. Willis does a solid job with his role but the last act of the script let him down as even a star of his magnitude and talents cant make up for the films numerous shortcomings.
MissCagey (2652 KP) rated End of Watch (2012) in Movies
Oct 12, 2017
This is very watchable and it does have the gorgeous and super talented (in my opinion!) Gyllenhall in, so bonus points there from the start.
However, the majority of the film is built around showing you the relationship between the two cops, them riding around, sharing jokes, introducing girlfriends, responding to calls etc. This makes it a bit aimless and I was wondering when the real story was going to start. When it does it's over in a flash which makes it seem like the main crux of the story is an afterthought.
I liked the film and it did give a good insight into the danger the police face on a daily basis but I would've liked less padding out and more time spent on the drug cartel story.
However, the majority of the film is built around showing you the relationship between the two cops, them riding around, sharing jokes, introducing girlfriends, responding to calls etc. This makes it a bit aimless and I was wondering when the real story was going to start. When it does it's over in a flash which makes it seem like the main crux of the story is an afterthought.
I liked the film and it did give a good insight into the danger the police face on a daily basis but I would've liked less padding out and more time spent on the drug cartel story.
Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated The Other Typist in Books
May 10, 2018
3.5 stars...I received this book from the publisher for review. I was given the uncorrected proof....
Rose Baker is a typist with the New York City Police Department. She is a very plain woman who does what she is supposed to and never what she shouldn't.
One day, a new typist is hired and from the start, Rose was mesmerized by Odalie. Odalie dressed and acted quite differently than Rose. Quite differently from most people that Rose knew.
Odalie and Rose became fast friends. Even moving Rose into her hotel apartment. She immersed Rose in her world and it was that immersion that sent Rose's life into a tailspin.
Set in the 1920's when there was very little work for women and even fewer things for them outside of the home, this book will have you wondering what is going to happen next.
Rose Baker is a typist with the New York City Police Department. She is a very plain woman who does what she is supposed to and never what she shouldn't.
One day, a new typist is hired and from the start, Rose was mesmerized by Odalie. Odalie dressed and acted quite differently than Rose. Quite differently from most people that Rose knew.
Odalie and Rose became fast friends. Even moving Rose into her hotel apartment. She immersed Rose in her world and it was that immersion that sent Rose's life into a tailspin.
Set in the 1920's when there was very little work for women and even fewer things for them outside of the home, this book will have you wondering what is going to happen next.
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Medusa Touch (1978) in Movies
Feb 10, 2019 (Updated Feb 10, 2019)
Rather ropey Omen rip-off with Richard Burton, Lino Ventura and Lee Remick (told you so). A French detective seconded to the London police (zis is ze co-production, bien sur) investigates the life of a writer and noted grump who has just had his head bashed in (Burton); the victim believed he had the power to cause disasters and gradually le inspecteur comes to agree with him.
Some genuinely interesting ideas, but a peculiar narrative structure and obviously low budget are definite limiting factors. Film makes good use of its biggest asset, Richard Burton, who gives his various misanthropic rants 110% and seems to be genuinely off his head (one wonders if he spent most of the shoot wrecked). Playing spot the cameo is also somewhat entertaining. Climax is a bit disappointing though; the whole film is never quite as chilling, powerful, or convincing as it thinks it is.
Some genuinely interesting ideas, but a peculiar narrative structure and obviously low budget are definite limiting factors. Film makes good use of its biggest asset, Richard Burton, who gives his various misanthropic rants 110% and seems to be genuinely off his head (one wonders if he spent most of the shoot wrecked). Playing spot the cameo is also somewhat entertaining. Climax is a bit disappointing though; the whole film is never quite as chilling, powerful, or convincing as it thinks it is.
Sam (74 KP) rated The Vile Village (A Series of Unfortunate Events #7) in Books
Mar 27, 2019
I’m going to be honest, I didn’t really enjoy this one. It’s more of a plot filler to make the whole series 13 books long and it just seems a bit forced.
The Baudelaire’s travel to VFD, where the whole village plans to look after them. The town has recently lost its chief of police and a new one is brought in, who, quite shockingly, isn’t Count Olaf. He comes in later.
I don’t really know what to say about this one. It’s definitely not the most entertaining, and I only read it to get to the next book in the series. It was definitely more of a filler than an actual movement in the plot.
I didn’t give up on it though, even though I was close. I think the fact that I didn’t even enjoy it made me read it faster just to get it over with.
The Baudelaire’s travel to VFD, where the whole village plans to look after them. The town has recently lost its chief of police and a new one is brought in, who, quite shockingly, isn’t Count Olaf. He comes in later.
I don’t really know what to say about this one. It’s definitely not the most entertaining, and I only read it to get to the next book in the series. It was definitely more of a filler than an actual movement in the plot.
I didn’t give up on it though, even though I was close. I think the fact that I didn’t even enjoy it made me read it faster just to get it over with.