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Eleanor (1463 KP) rated Along Came a Spider (Alex Cross, #1) in Books
Jul 1, 2019
Good start to Long Running Crime Series
7.5 for me, rounded up for an enjoyable audio experience.
I listened to the unabridged audio book of this narrated by Charles Turner who did a good job of reading this long crime thriller. I had a poor experience with my first Patterson but this was a good recovery for me.
This book introduces us to Alex Cross (there are A LOT of Cross books) and I think I can see why. Cross is a likeable cop and psychologist, dedicated both to his job and two children what he is raising motherless with the help of his no nonsense grandmother (Nana Moma.) He’s got a lot going on, although besides Cross and Nana the rest of the characters were fairly bland and oddly not a lot of time seemed to be spent working with his partner.
The book gets off to a nice quick paced start and really gets you motoring through it. Cross is redirected from a multiple murder investigation in a poor area of the city to assist in the case of the kidnapping of some rich kids which sets a feeling of tension. There is a theme throughout of white / black tension which despite this book been 25 years old still seems all too relevant.
I did find the book to stall somewhat in the middle; especially when it came to some dull courtroom antics. The ending picked up for me and I was left satisfied. Although there was a tad too much relationship stuff for my liking it wasn’t completely over the top.
Willing to carry on with this series and see where we go with Cross next.
I listened to the unabridged audio book of this narrated by Charles Turner who did a good job of reading this long crime thriller. I had a poor experience with my first Patterson but this was a good recovery for me.
This book introduces us to Alex Cross (there are A LOT of Cross books) and I think I can see why. Cross is a likeable cop and psychologist, dedicated both to his job and two children what he is raising motherless with the help of his no nonsense grandmother (Nana Moma.) He’s got a lot going on, although besides Cross and Nana the rest of the characters were fairly bland and oddly not a lot of time seemed to be spent working with his partner.
The book gets off to a nice quick paced start and really gets you motoring through it. Cross is redirected from a multiple murder investigation in a poor area of the city to assist in the case of the kidnapping of some rich kids which sets a feeling of tension. There is a theme throughout of white / black tension which despite this book been 25 years old still seems all too relevant.
I did find the book to stall somewhat in the middle; especially when it came to some dull courtroom antics. The ending picked up for me and I was left satisfied. Although there was a tad too much relationship stuff for my liking it wasn’t completely over the top.
Willing to carry on with this series and see where we go with Cross next.
Rainbow Mirror by Prurient
Album Watch
Marking 20 years of Prurient and Hospital Productions’ concurrent paths, the epic 3 hr 20 minutes...
dance electronic
Hazel (2934 KP) rated One Good Lie in Books
Oct 10, 2021
Full of tension and mystery, this is another great book from Jane Isaac.
Ruby and Sophie have had what can only be described as an horrific year but things are not about to get much better any time soon when on the evening of their mother's wake, a woman is murdered but not just any woman, one that is connected to the man convicted and imprisoned for their mother's murder.
Then we have creepy boyfriend, Ewan, who just happened to be out jogging on the night of the murder, isn't forthcoming about his past and appears to be alienating Sophie from her friends and family. The more Ruby discovers about him, the more she fears for her sister. Sophie, however, is not convinced and gradually, the sisters' relationship starts to deteriorate.
Are the two connected or is it just a coincidence?
Jane Isaac appears to be able to create tension with ease and this has it in abundance. She is also able to create interesting and believable characters with each one having a purpose and adding something to the story. The pacing of the book is good; a little slow in parts but the last third makes up for it with the ending being quite satisfying.
Overall, I think this is a great start to Jane Isaac's foray into psychological thrillers rather than her usual crime thrillers and I, for one, look forward to going on the journey with her as, I hope, she writes more in this genre.
Many thanks to Canelo and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
Ruby and Sophie have had what can only be described as an horrific year but things are not about to get much better any time soon when on the evening of their mother's wake, a woman is murdered but not just any woman, one that is connected to the man convicted and imprisoned for their mother's murder.
Then we have creepy boyfriend, Ewan, who just happened to be out jogging on the night of the murder, isn't forthcoming about his past and appears to be alienating Sophie from her friends and family. The more Ruby discovers about him, the more she fears for her sister. Sophie, however, is not convinced and gradually, the sisters' relationship starts to deteriorate.
Are the two connected or is it just a coincidence?
Jane Isaac appears to be able to create tension with ease and this has it in abundance. She is also able to create interesting and believable characters with each one having a purpose and adding something to the story. The pacing of the book is good; a little slow in parts but the last third makes up for it with the ending being quite satisfying.
Overall, I think this is a great start to Jane Isaac's foray into psychological thrillers rather than her usual crime thrillers and I, for one, look forward to going on the journey with her as, I hope, she writes more in this genre.
Many thanks to Canelo and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
Dracoria Malfoy (690 KP) rated A Court of Mist and Fury in Books
Sep 23, 2017 (Updated Oct 30, 2017)
Erm... Scenes (6 more)
Cassian
Nessian Tension
Mor
Rhys
Every single character other than Tamlin and Ianthe and Hybern and maybe Lucien I dunno
The writing
Tamlin and Ianthe and Hybern and maybe Lucien I dunno. (3 more)
Attor
Almost nothing
Broken Bond
Contains spoilers, click to show
This was significantly better than the first book, and definitely one I won't regret reading. The... erm... scenes were written well, though I think they could have been better. The ending killed me, and the shocking twist at the end, that Elane was Lucien's mate? That. Was. INSANE. As usual, with amazing books, I had to close it and hold it in my hand for a good 10 minutes, while resisting the urge to throw it at a wall. All in all though, a good book that could do with almost no improvement.
T3L3V4T0R5 (17 KP) rated Get Out (2017) in Movies
Jul 16, 2017
Very Well Written and Suspenseful (spoilers)
Contains spoilers, click to show
Jordan Peele wrote a decent supernatural thriller with Get Out. The tension was good and the story unfolded well. My first problem is that the "big reveal" was semi-predictable with the clues they were giving us, not to mention that it reminded me too much of another film (Skeleton Key). It was easy to see from start that the girlfriend was involved in the "trap", if you will, and I spent the second half of the movie praying for her demise and a hopefully violent end to the "Macaulay Culkin on crack" looking douche. The very last few minutes of the movie (the pictures) were probably the only part of the film that had any shock value to the story.
Andy K (10823 KP) rated Predator (1987) in Movies
Apr 28, 2018
If a ever go deaf, it will be because of Predator!
I found a used Blu Ray at a local shop for $1.99 so I decided to upgrade my existing DVD and boy was it worth it. The picture and sound quality was amazing (deafening).
Almost everything about the film holds up given this is my 20+ viewing. Has to be in the top 5 action films of all time right along side Die Hard and Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
The remote setting, characters, musical score, tension, slow burn reveal and screenplay all lend to the pristine action and compelling storytelling here.
A have to admit a few optical effects and the Predator suit do look a bit dated now, but that does not impact my review.
Such a classic!
Almost everything about the film holds up given this is my 20+ viewing. Has to be in the top 5 action films of all time right along side Die Hard and Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
The remote setting, characters, musical score, tension, slow burn reveal and screenplay all lend to the pristine action and compelling storytelling here.
A have to admit a few optical effects and the Predator suit do look a bit dated now, but that does not impact my review.
Such a classic!
Chelsea (166 KP) rated Two Girls Down: A Novel in Books
May 3, 2018
Alice Vega is a basically professional head hunter and, when hired to find two young girls who vanished from a Kmart parking lot, enlists the help of a local retired cop turned private investigator, Max Caplan or “Cap”.
The POV goes back and forth between Alice and Cap, which I really enjoyed. Alice is sort of mysterious and keeps a cool head, not showing many emotions to others, but the reader gets to feel what she’s really feeling. Though divorced, Cap is a family man and I loved his relationship with his daughter. Both were determined to find these girls and would do whatever it took. There was also a little romantic tension between Cap and Vega, but then at the end nothing came of it, which was pretty disappointing. Overall a good read!
The POV goes back and forth between Alice and Cap, which I really enjoyed. Alice is sort of mysterious and keeps a cool head, not showing many emotions to others, but the reader gets to feel what she’s really feeling. Though divorced, Cap is a family man and I loved his relationship with his daughter. Both were determined to find these girls and would do whatever it took. There was also a little romantic tension between Cap and Vega, but then at the end nothing came of it, which was pretty disappointing. Overall a good read!
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Triple Frontier (2019) in Movies
Mar 15, 2019
Dull
Considering the very decent cast and a not entirely unintriguing plot, I was hoping this might actually be quite good. Sadly, it wasn’t. The soundtrack was pretty good and the film started off well throwing us right into the action, it just went downhill after that. The cast are quite decent, and Oscar Isaac is always good to watch (although I really don’t rate Ben Affleck, as usual). The problem is that the film itself is fairly dull and predictable. It takes well over an hour (half of the run time) to get into any action whatsoever and even then it isn’t particularly entertaining. There was no tension or real intrigue, and it played out exactly as you’d expect. I was hoping for something similar to Sicario, but sadly this was nothing like it.
ClareR (6062 KP) rated The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air, #2) in Books
Apr 21, 2019
This series gets better and better!
It’s not often that the second book in a trilogy is better than the first, but I really feel that’s the case with this book. The machinations against one another (that’ll be EVERYONE!), the political intrigue - no-one trusts anyone else in this series, and for good reason! Nobody is particularly nice. The sexual tension between Jude and Carden reaches a whole new level, but even then, there’s no trust. I didn’t see ANY of the double crosses coming, but then I was so sucked in to the story, so it’s hardly surprising.
This is such a good series, and I have a year to wait for the last instalment!!
Many thanks to Readers First for my copy of this book, and for feeding the Faerie land addiction!
This is such a good series, and I have a year to wait for the last instalment!!
Many thanks to Readers First for my copy of this book, and for feeding the Faerie land addiction!
Film and stuff (30 KP) rated Backtrack (2015) in Movies
May 15, 2019 (Updated May 15, 2019)
Fails to deliver
Director: Michael Petroni
Writer: Michael Petroni
Stars: Adrien Brody, Jenni Baird, Bruce Spence and Sam Neill
What's it about?
Peter Bower is a Psychiatrist who discovers all of his clients are ghosts that died in a train accident that he was witness to as a child. Whilst revisiting his home town where the incident took place, he begins to discover the truth behind the accident with the help of the victims spirits
Is it scary?
Nah. Tension fails to really build and the jump scares are very predictable
Does it have any redeeming features?
Well acted and a mildly gripping ending
.
How does it compare to other horrors?
It makes the sins by being neither entertaining or so bad that it's funny
Writer: Michael Petroni
Stars: Adrien Brody, Jenni Baird, Bruce Spence and Sam Neill
What's it about?
Peter Bower is a Psychiatrist who discovers all of his clients are ghosts that died in a train accident that he was witness to as a child. Whilst revisiting his home town where the incident took place, he begins to discover the truth behind the accident with the help of the victims spirits
Is it scary?
Nah. Tension fails to really build and the jump scares are very predictable
Does it have any redeeming features?
Well acted and a mildly gripping ending
.
How does it compare to other horrors?
It makes the sins by being neither entertaining or so bad that it's funny