Smashbomb

Search

Search results

All (1991)

Content

ArecRain (8 KP) rated Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress, #1) in Books

Jan 18, 2018

I forgot how much I loved a good paranormal romance novel until I discovered Frost. A couple of my favorite authors recommended Jeaniene Frost, singing her praises. I was a bit hesitant after the slew of horrible vampire romances that I have forced myself to make it through as of late.

Boy, was I pleasantly surprised. Frosts fiery Cat immediately captured my attention. She was one of the first female protagonists who actually enjoyed being schooled about her weaknesses. Instead of being obnoxiously stubborn, she actually threw herself into making herself stronger and learning from her faults. I know that sounds like so many other female leads, but to me she seemed different. I didnt feel that everything was a struggle between Cat and Bones. Whenever they fell in love, I could see how they got to that point. They did have fire and chemistry, but it was far from them continuously butting heads and arguing like so many other novels do.

I also enjoyed the simple plot. It wasnt about Cat and Bones being the only two being able to save the world from certain doom. Of course, they did have a goal they were working towards, and an antagonist they had to take down. However, there were no random surprises that only the author could see coming and no twist that broke our necks from confusion.

However, I will state that Cats ridiculous mother seriously made me want to slam her face into the pavement. While Frost can create the likable characters of Bones and Cat, she can also create some monsters like Cats mother.

Kudos

Erika (17788 KP) rated Mary Poppins Returns (2018) in Movies

Dec 22, 2018 (Updated Dec 22, 2018)

A sequel no one asked for, but Disney was going to give it to us whether we wanted it or not...

Unnecessary is the main word I would use to describe this film. Mary Poppins (1964) is actually practically perfect in every way, like the lady herself; and anything to follow was going to pale in comparison. Maybe I would have been more tolerant if Christopher Robin hadn't had an extremely similar plot, but I was honestly just counting down the minutes until it was over.
The music was ok, I guess, sufficient. I just can't believe Emily Blunt in period pieces, she has a face that knows about text messaging (I am a huge Blunt fan, btw). I'm glad Disney decided to keep the whole, American doing the crappiest Cockney accent thing going. I get why they chose Lin-Manuel Miranda, he's very entertaining, and I know he did that Hamilton thing (zero interest in that). The only parts I loved him in was when he was just dancing, no singing with the bad accent. The lamplighter song was by far the best out of the lot.

In the end, I've seen this same movie several times. I'm really doubting whether I want to see Aladdin, and I'll never give Disney my money again for a remake/sequel to a classic film (aside from possibly Aladdin).

Honestly, I don't know who would actually love this film. Who was it even made for? I think the reason they want everyone to see it the first weekend is so it doesn't get around how just ok the film was.

Kudos

Lee (2222 KP) Dec 22, 2018

One thing I forgot to mention in my review was Meryl Streep. What was even the point of that scene and her character, it added nothing to the movie

Kudos

Erika (17788 KP) Dec 22, 2018

Yeah, Streep's character had zero purpose and slowed the already snail's pace plot down. The whole movie was just odd, like a blatant cash grab like..cough, cough, Crimes of Grindelwald.

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2200 KP) rated Murky Waters in Books

Mar 14, 2020

Murky Waters

Diane Vallere | 2019 | Mystery

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Kyra is the youngest of the three mermaid sisters we are learning about in Diane Vallere’s Mermaid Mystery novellas. She has been coddled and babied her entire life. Known for her beauty and her singing voice, she plays into both of those roles, flirting with every merman who shows interest. On her way to music lessons one morning, she finds the Nautilus Vault opened and several squid tied up near the entrance. She frees them, but she can tell someone has been inside the vault. Can she figure out who is responsible?

In many ways, this novella feels like a coming of age tale since Kyra really grows as the story progresses. No, she doesn’t start out as shallow as she may at first appear. I really enjoyed getting to know her and watching the growth happen over the course of the story. Now, this isn’t to say that we don’t get a mystery as well with plenty to keep us engaged. The growth comes directly from the events of the story, and it all feels very natural. There isn’t quite as much background on mermaid culture as there was in the first story, but we do get enough that if you jumped in with this story you wouldn’t be lost. The other characters are interesting, and we see some other sides of them than we did in the first novella. More than anything, I had fun imaging I lived in the ocean as well.

NOTE: This story, along with the stories of Kyra’s sisters, are included in the Mermaid Mysteries anthology. Buy them individually or as a set, but there is no need to buy both.