tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74416248980038913572024-03-01T19:07:25.898-06:00The Movieholic & Bibliophile's BlogMy thoughts on movies and books
(Please report broken links to me!)Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.comBlogger428125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-23363454852593282372011-03-02T23:12:00.000-06:002011-03-02T23:12:54.587-06:00The First True-Life Adventure<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg06CsWSuaD3HBfsbNZTnnC_jBXKqmsz-OxYwZUJH9GyYSak-OMdXgWLoSUDOWdYTBJ9EV7FCxc5M25cKC3m04gYsj1xRM2FIRsZEO17QgGPG_rHerXdghq1VmyXrAKcZKf3u2rOuwjP_4/s1600/Seal-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg06CsWSuaD3HBfsbNZTnnC_jBXKqmsz-OxYwZUJH9GyYSak-OMdXgWLoSUDOWdYTBJ9EV7FCxc5M25cKC3m04gYsj1xRM2FIRsZEO17QgGPG_rHerXdghq1VmyXrAKcZKf3u2rOuwjP_4/s320/Seal-main.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><blockquote><i>Tons of fanged and savage fury... fighting for a mate!</i> </blockquote><blockquote><i>Mighty "Beach-master" and invading "Bachelor" clash in mortal combat... as the Arctic's strangest mystery unfolds before your eyes! First of Walt Disney’s “True-Life Adventures” Series. A live-action saga of nature in the Mystic Pribilof Islands.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> Seal Island<br />
<b>Release:</b> December 21, 1948<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Documentary- Animal<br />
<b>MPAA Rating:</b> PG-13<br />
<b>Photographed By:</b> Alfred and Elma Milotte<br />
<b>Production Supervisor:</b> Ben Sharpsteen<br />
<b>Director:</b> James Algar<br />
<b>Music By:</b> Oliver Wallace<br />
<b>Produced By:</b> Walt Disney<br />
<b>Studio:</b> Walt Disney Productions<br />
<b>Distributed By:</b> RKO Radio Pictures<br />
<b>Run Time:</b> 27 minutes<br />
<br />
<b>“By special permission of United States Department of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service.”</b><br />
<br />
The very first True-Life Adventure featurette was called <i>Seal Island</i> and it mostly features the mating and life cycle of the fur seal on the Pribilof Islands in Alaska which Walt Disney and daughter Sharon may have seen on their trip to the state the previous year. Narrated by Winston Hibler, this not quite 30 minute short won the Academy Award in 1949 for Best Short Subject (Two-Reel) and the Best Subject award at the Cannes festival. However, like many of Walt Disney’s brilliant ideas (adding sound to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RexXDDA8RoI">Steamboat Willie</a> for example), he had to really do some fast talking to get anyone interested. RKO, the then Disney distributor, didn't want to take a chance on the film so Walt somehow got a theater in Pasadena to run the film to qualify it for the Academy Award. After it won, Walt was rumored to have said to his brother, "Here, Roy, take this [the Oscar] over to RKO and bang them over the head with it."<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgmqqDcen3GWaARFgYTEEMvCOIN5E-vB3PYR9PXJe52r4bZx3wAoeRPMfhl5hQdLxX6AaD8jk03rFxiOy9niS4MiGjHxjQYPZjzXY0JGno8nJVRZJBhdpfR-mDit609EoUh47S1DiQByG/s1600/Seal-babies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgmqqDcen3GWaARFgYTEEMvCOIN5E-vB3PYR9PXJe52r4bZx3wAoeRPMfhl5hQdLxX6AaD8jk03rFxiOy9niS4MiGjHxjQYPZjzXY0JGno8nJVRZJBhdpfR-mDit609EoUh47S1DiQByG/s320/Seal-babies.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The idea for <i>Seal Island</i> and the eventual True Life series has become muddled with time. In some interviews, Walt Disney stumbled across Al Millotte in his camera store while visiting Alaska and asked him if he wanted to make pictures, another story goes that Walt Disney heard about the Millottes while they were in Seattle and sent them back to Alaska to see what they could get, and still another has Walt Disney taking credit for everything but the filming of the animals. Probably Elma Milotte's story is the most truthful in which they sent Disney some of the footage they shot of Alaska and he asked for more of the seals. They then filmed a <i>ton</i> of footage and cinematographer Alfred Milotte and the film editor Anthony Gerard pieced pieces of it together to come up with this short subject. The True Life Adventures; especially this first one, also helped the studio out financially because they grossed so much more than they cost to make. With very little animation (beautiful though it is), and no actors to pay, it pretty much just cost them the film and the money to pay the photographers.<br />
<br />
At the beginning of the film, this appears on the screen: “This is one of a series of True- Life Adventures presenting strange facts about the world we live in. These films are photographed in their natural settings and are completely authentic, unstaged and unrehearsed.” In spite of this, to tell a coherent story, there is some manipulation of the film such as when a baby seal is supposedly lost yet you can see other seals around it when the mother "rescues" it and who knows? It may be another seal altogether! You don't really notice things like this when watching the film though. It does have anthropomorphic conventions to make the animals relatable to the viewer and some of the violence and deaths are softened as well too.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdhWcmFV43I2KFrC-hQq5keyn4ezpXzak_c_IqxuRnioXYcQRoCnI5SiQi0sXDbE2XvPvI-UO_G275_52dtxZluUGbQFglQL2deG-UeqrlpvuXxXybg9jGSn3t5TrfGsKKdlssPl2HNXc/s1600/Seal-females.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdhWcmFV43I2KFrC-hQq5keyn4ezpXzak_c_IqxuRnioXYcQRoCnI5SiQi0sXDbE2XvPvI-UO_G275_52dtxZluUGbQFglQL2deG-UeqrlpvuXxXybg9jGSn3t5TrfGsKKdlssPl2HNXc/s320/Seal-females.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Other than a few basic facts, I didn’t know very much about the fur seal but boy are those “Beach Masters” some ugly brutes! Brute is an especially apt word when describing these animals since the climax of the film is a fight between two bulls, one Beach Master, one Bachelor (a male seal who has no harem of mates) and it does get a little bloody. The females and the pups were very cute though and it’s odd how their flippers really looked like hands and feet sometimes. Even if they weren’t a big part of this featurette, what I really liked was the birds featured on <i>Seal Island</i>, especially the penguins!<br />
<br />
James Algar said that the True-Life Adventures were "based on the premise that information can be entertainment if interestingly presented.” However, there are no educators or scientist advisors for the film though there are three people credited as researchers, so not everything that is presented is necessarily true. Nor is all those sounds that the animals made what you’d actually hear in real life (the seals in real life sound a bit like sheep)… they are all special effects! There is actually no sound to any of the footage shot for any of the True- Life Adventures (the equipment wasn’t sophisticated enough back then to have both sound and picture and that‘s about the only “dated” thing in <i>Seal Island</i>) so it’s up to the sound effects guys and composers to make the film entertaining. Walt Disney received several awards for this and all his ’Adventure’ films such as being appointed as a member of the President's Committee on Higher Education and even a commendation from the National Geographic Society.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><b>It’s behind this curtain of fog that nature plays out one of her greatest dramas. A story strange as fantasy, yet a story straight from the realm of fact. For this is a True- Life Adventure, the saga of the fur seal.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>[Baby seal has caught his flipper under a bull or "Beach Master"]</b><b>When 800 pounds of blubber has parked on your flipper, there’s not much you can do about it but wait until the big bully makes up his mind to move. Free at last. It's a hard life, this survival of the fittest.</b></blockquote><br />
<i>Seal Island Links</i><br />
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040763/">Imdb</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seal_Island_(film)">Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://disney.go.com/vault/archives/movies/sealisland/sealisland.html">Disney Archives</a><br />
<br />
Since there is no videos online for Seal Island, here are some seals!<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="290" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Cp643744hs4" title="YouTube video player" width="380"></iframe><br />
<br />
Also, there is a clip from the movie from 1:06-2:47<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="290" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/MSHpbIrT9D8" title="YouTube video player" width="380"></iframe>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-61074753235306326632011-02-24T16:19:00.000-06:002011-02-24T16:19:52.977-06:00No One Wins in Nuclear War<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQdl_Dq1XJkT97UsOOWn5hz1AGbonoNZNoFg6kKJf3LF88ce8IUX8OAs9gtmX6eL7oftXf9hGeJcxBAoTAo0sadFudLe-kQG6yE6MNXVyL4-2b7fz_5hyZ4SZVqEudwqUvTq2MQTMW-QOr/s1600/Alas-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQdl_Dq1XJkT97UsOOWn5hz1AGbonoNZNoFg6kKJf3LF88ce8IUX8OAs9gtmX6eL7oftXf9hGeJcxBAoTAo0sadFudLe-kQG6yE6MNXVyL4-2b7fz_5hyZ4SZVqEudwqUvTq2MQTMW-QOr/s320/Alas-main.jpg" width="222" /></a></div><blockquote><i>The day after the bomb dropped the thousands of years of "progress" that had covered the treacheries and weaknesses of ordinary man with a thin veneer of civilization were dissolved and melted like snow in the desert's dusty face.</i> </blockquote><blockquote><i>Then-- the law of the jungle reigned, but in the wreckage a few courageous survivors, men and women with the guts to have hope, were determined to build a new and better world on the ruins of the old. This is their story.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> Alas, Babylon<br />
<b>Author:</b> Pat Frank<br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 2/20/11<br />
<b>Published: </b>1959<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> J.B. Lippincott<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 312<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Dystopian/ Post- Apocalyptic<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_4o2INqn6BiyHFVH8YBmIN3K4JBuVhx5nbpSgR-VHQFOmYthCtTDUKZ67XjnWwAMrRvTMUYvfDq4bLlHxZK9SHcDqWZcVadGepd2v_GsLpV3J_A4ALDEDAmdZvpL2YuzIoPhJNWF0mKyU/s1600/Alas-mushroom+cloud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_4o2INqn6BiyHFVH8YBmIN3K4JBuVhx5nbpSgR-VHQFOmYthCtTDUKZ67XjnWwAMrRvTMUYvfDq4bLlHxZK9SHcDqWZcVadGepd2v_GsLpV3J_A4ALDEDAmdZvpL2YuzIoPhJNWF0mKyU/s200/Alas-mushroom+cloud.jpg" width="200" /></a>Reporter, government official, war correspondent, philanderer, alcoholic, and fisherman Harry Hart Frank did a lot in his life but it's the novels he published under his nickname Pat Frank that got the most attraction, especially his magnum opus <i>Alas, Babylon</i>. Mr. Frank said that he got the idea for the book when a friend asked him a question that he himself had been pondering, “What do you think would happen if the Russkies hit us when we weren’t looking?” After replying that he thought we would win but with a casualty of fifty or sixty million, his friend said, “What a depression that would make!” After relating this incident in the foreward of <i>Alas, Babylon</i> Pat Frank said, “I doubt if he realized the exact nature and extent of the depression-- which is why I am writing this book.”<br />
<br />
This story takes place in the fictional town of Fort Repose which is in Central Florida but based upon another real life small town called Mandarin and then set in the location of the town of Mount Dora. This book is one of the first post-apocalyptic novels written during the Atomic Era. Frank did do his research, from reading the Bible (which is where the title comes from, in Revelations) to visiting Cape Canaveral to consult with air command officials. He even called up a few doctors so Doctor Dan would be authentic. He also calls upon his time in the service as well as his prowess as a fisherman (he lived on a lake). It was said that he was a consultant of both the Department of Defense and NASA too. What he knew and what he learned during the course of writing <i>Alas, Babylon</i> and a few other of his books, Mr. Frank applied to real life such as buying canned food, bottled water, and building a shelter for his family. He even wrote a nonfiction book called <i>How to Survive the H-Bomb and Why</i>.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRt3-w9nI1bkykxqPn0gLqhh1YfLPauczhipwhfA0w_hoHZqM_klvE-HInbJ7nbytRN4k1EyDby5v0OdXzVqIqICk6lPj_6UaACHR5UbYAxZWJ3RO2vT1gnJN2g6kFb2qmD93x57IhpvA2/s1600/Alas-+Ben+Franklin+fishing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRt3-w9nI1bkykxqPn0gLqhh1YfLPauczhipwhfA0w_hoHZqM_klvE-HInbJ7nbytRN4k1EyDby5v0OdXzVqIqICk6lPj_6UaACHR5UbYAxZWJ3RO2vT1gnJN2g6kFb2qmD93x57IhpvA2/s200/Alas-+Ben+Franklin+fishing.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<i>Alas Babylon</i> is about adapting to the circumstances by learning to live like your great-great-great grandparents did and at the very center it's about family. Everything the main character Randy Bragg does is for his family; his blood relatives (brother's wife and children) as well as the adoptive family of all his nearby neighbors and the town doctor too. Though I enjoyed all the characters; especially little Ben Franklin, Randy was definitely my favorite and the most relatable for me. In the book there’s also a bit about the spirit and faith in and of man too and unlike other stories found in this genre (the barbarism of <i>Lord of the Flies</i> comes to mind), this book does end on a bleak but hopeful note. However, I believe after what Mr. Frank had seen all over the world and heard from his friends in the military, that he wrote this book as mainly a wake-up call about just how unprepared America is for war (or even natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina). After all, General Curtis LeMay; whom at the time was the current head of the SAC (and who is quoted in the book), was to have said "this man must have been reading my mail" after he had finished reading <i>Alas, Babylon</i>.<br />
<br />
It is a post-apocalyptic novel but it's also set in the present (the present being the time it was published, 1959) and it is a glance into not only the lifestyle but the prejudices back then too. However, it’s also completely realistic and is easily applied to life today. I may not be old enough to remember the heyday of the threats of the nuclear holocaust in the Cold War time period which was going on before and after <i>Alas, Babylon</i>'s publication but reading it does make one aware just how dependent the human race is on all our wonderful modern conveniences. This fact hit home for me a few years ago after Hurricane Katrina when we (and our town) was without power for a few days. That was pretty scary for me then since I had never before experienced something like that and all told, we got off pretty easy because of the area we were in. I couldn't even imagine living in a world like the setting of this book with no end in sight.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBkT9XesH_OmIqJ0pfjTqe2gByhAQTUgn4K6knKbUaXyh8RvwsfphTnHTWB01CL0sp9IEqkUfviMhOmaHckcMqLccvOS-Qn5mPbEgZjQAhn1_ygdimtQKnb7HzQyXCf3lptFYl0crfaVrk/s1600/Alas-armadillo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBkT9XesH_OmIqJ0pfjTqe2gByhAQTUgn4K6knKbUaXyh8RvwsfphTnHTWB01CL0sp9IEqkUfviMhOmaHckcMqLccvOS-Qn5mPbEgZjQAhn1_ygdimtQKnb7HzQyXCf3lptFYl0crfaVrk/s200/Alas-armadillo.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
Stephen King's <i>The Stand</i> is not only one of my favorite books, it's also one of the books I re-read most often and up till recently it never occurred to me that I'm a huge dystopian fan. Yet I've loved every dystopian novel I've ever read including Scott Westerfeld's <i><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/02/pretty-is-as-pretty-does.html">Uglies</a></i> and James Marsden's <i>Tomorrow When the War Began</i>. That’s also counting <i>Alas, Babylon</i> which I read for the first time back in my junior year of high school when it was required reading. The teacher Mrs. Harris actually gave me a copy since I enjoyed it so much! I had forgotten a good bit of the story but I think I may have loved it even more this time around.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><b>“LeMay says the only way a general can win a modern war is not fight one. Our whole <i>raison d'être</i> was deterrent force. When you don’t deter them any longer, you lose. I think we lost some time ago, because the last five Sputniks have been reconnaissance satellites. They’ve been mapping us, with infrared and transistor television, measuring us for the Sunday punch.”</b><b>Randy felt angry. He felt cheated. “Why hasn’t anybody-- everybody been told about this?”</b><b>Mark shrugged. “You know how it is-- everything that comes in is stamped secret or top secret or cosmic or something and the only people who dare declassify anything are the big wheels right at the top, and the people at the top hold conferences and somebody says, ‘Now let’s not be hasty. Let’s not alarm the public.’ So everything stays secret or cosmic. Personally, I think everybody ought to be digging or evacuating right this minute. Maybe if the other side knew we were digging, if they knew that we knew, they wouldn’t try to get away with it.”</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>Pete began to play the cash register with two fingers while the car boy, awed, filled the big sacks. Randy was aware that seven or eight women, lined up behind him, counted his purchases, fascinated. He heard one whisper, “Fifteen cans of coffee-- fifteen!” The line grew, and he was conscious of a steady, complaining murmur. Unaccountably, he felt guilty. He felt that he ought to face these women and shout, “All of you! All of you buy everything you can!” It wouldn’t do any good. They would be certain he was mad.</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>Why should he be so upset about the remark of a thirteen-year-old boy? When he was sure the children slept in the back seat, he said, “They take it calmly, almost as a matter of course, don’t they?”</b><b>“Yes,” Helen said. “You see, all their lives, ever since they’ve known anything, they’ve lived under the shadow of war-- atomic war. For them the abnormal has become normal. All their lives they have heard nothing else, and they expect it.” </b><b>“They’re conditioned,” Randy said. “A child of the nineteenth century would quickly go mad with fear, I think, in the world of today. It must have been pretty wonderful to have lived in the years, say, between 1870 and 1914, when peace was the normal condition and people really were appalled at the idea of war, and believed there’d never be a big one. A big one was impossible, they used to say. It would cost too much. It would disrupt the world trade and bankrupt everybody. Even after the first World War people didn’t accept war as normal. They had to call it The War to End War or we wouldn’t have fought it. Helen, what has become of us?”</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>What had jolted Randy from sleep-- he would not learn all the facts for a long, a very long time after-- were two nuclear explosions, both in the megaton range, the warheads of missiles lobbed in by submarines. The first obliterated the SAC base at Homestead, and incidentally sank and returned to the sea a considerable area of Florida’s tip. Ground Zero of the second missile was Miami’s International Airport, not far from the heart of the city. Randy’s couch had been shaken by shock waves transmitted through the earth, which travel faster than through the air, so he had been awake when the blast and sound arrived a little later. Gazing at the glow to the south, Randy was witnessing, from a distance of almost two hundred miles, the incineration of a million people.</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>“I don’t know where, or when, or how. But as soon as school reopens in Fort Repose, or anywhere around, you go. You may have to walk.”</b><b>“Golly, Randy, walk! It’s three miles to town.”</b><b>“Your grandfather used to walk to school in Fort Repose. When he was your age there wasn’t any school busses. When he couldn’t hitch a ride in a buggy, or one of the early automobiles, he walked.” Randy put his arm around the boy’s shoulder. “Let’s get going. I guess we’ll both have to learn to walk again.”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>In block letters he wrote:</b><b>“DANGER! KEEP OUT! RADIATION!”</b><b>“You’d better put something else on there,” Randy said. “There are a lot of people around here who still don’t know what radiation means.”</b><b>“Do you really think so?”</b><b>“I’m positive of it. They’ve never seen it, or felt it. They hear about it, but I don’t think they believe it. They didn’t believe it could kill them before The Day- if they thought of it at all-- and I don’t think they believe it now. You’d better add something they understand, like Poison.”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>“Who cares about fish? If I grow up I’m not going to be a fisherman!”</b><b>Helen called from the kitchen window. The children disappeared.</b><b>Randy said, “Did you ever hear a little girl say ‘<i>If</i> I grow up’ before?”</b><b>“No, I never did. It gives me the creeps.”</b></blockquote><br />
<b>First Paragraph</b>: In Fort Repose, a river town in Central Florida, it was said that sending a message by Western Union was the same as broadcasting it over the combined networks. This was not entirely true. It was true that Florence Wechek, the manager, gossiped. Yet she judiciously classified the personal intelligence that flowed under her plump fingers, and maintained a prudent censorship over her tongue. The scandalous and the embarrassing she excised from her conversation. Sprightly, trivial, and harmless items she passed on to friends, thus enhancing her status and relieving the tedium of spinsterhood. If your sister was in trouble, and wired for money, the secret was safe with Florence Wechek. But if your sister bore a legitimate baby, its sex and weight would soon be known all over town.<br />
<br />
<b>Links</b><br />
<a href="http://jacksonville.com/lifestyles/2009-06-15/story/pat_frank%E2%80%99s_%E2%80%98alas_babylon_%E2%80%99_50_years_later">Article on Pat Frank</a> that include interviews with his family<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alas,_Babylon">Book Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Frank">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.novelguide.com/Alas-Babylon/biography.html">NovelGuide</a><br />
<br />
LOUD! Fan made promotional trailer<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="249" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/QDfE6FpS2nk" title="YouTube video player" width="325"></iframe><br />
<br />
Source: Personal copy, courtesy of my high school literature teacher<br />
<br />
<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Picture Explanations: </span></i></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Mushroom Cloud</b>: see fourth quote</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Boy Fishing:</b> Ben Franklin fishing. A good bit of their food nowadays comes from the river</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Armadillo</b>: When the fish stop biting and the armadillos start rooting up the garden, the family learns that they taste pretty good!</span>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-21744983897447279502011-02-21T17:15:00.000-06:002011-02-21T17:15:24.067-06:00Moonlight Becomes You So<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglQFRfhMqqGbETCqx0-aXlSjhre3gA_mUcnfnJm6J_JszBN-e1Vl5OF0W8jzlnpi8jrbwwqyT-vD2PuRPAueXhekCKS0aSpU_EVmVXNcz6uYCCbvp5JPzf-NBCY07aN5KakYVnnjMpIBii/s1600/Never-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglQFRfhMqqGbETCqx0-aXlSjhre3gA_mUcnfnJm6J_JszBN-e1Vl5OF0W8jzlnpi8jrbwwqyT-vD2PuRPAueXhekCKS0aSpU_EVmVXNcz6uYCCbvp5JPzf-NBCY07aN5KakYVnnjMpIBii/s320/Never-main.jpg" width="219" /></a></div><blockquote><i>"Moonlight can totally change your life. And it all starts so simply. </i><i>You. Him. The moon. You’re toast."</i></blockquote><blockquote><i>Okay, so maybe Shelby has made a few mistakes with boys lately (how was she supposed to know Wes had "borrowed" that Porsche?). But her stepmother totally overreacts when she catches Shelby in a post-curfew kiss with a hot senior: Suddenly Shelby's summer plans are on the shelf, and she's being packed off to brat camp. It's good-bye, prom dress; hello, hiking boots.</i> </blockquote><blockquote><i>Things start looking up, though, when Shelby meets fellow camper (and son of a rock star) Austin Bridges III. But soon she realizes there's more to Austin than crush material—his family has a dark secret, and he wants Shelby's help guarding it. Shelby knows that she really shouldn't be getting tangled up with another bad boy . . . but who is she to turn her back on a guy in need, especially such a good-looking one? One thing's for sure: That pesky full moon is about to get her into trouble all over again.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> Never Cry Werewolf<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.heatherdavisbooks.com/">Heather Davis</a><br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 2/18/11- 2/19/11<br />
<b>Published:</b> August 18th, 2009<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> HarperTeen<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 212<br />
<b>Genre:</b> YA- Paranormal romance<br />
<br />
The shortest way to summarize Heather Davis’ <i>Never Cry Werewolf</i> is this: a cute girl named Shelby Locke whose widowed father became rich landed a gold-digger that wants her out of the house. They’re sending her to brat camp where she meets a boy that they definitely won’t approve of if they knew his secrets. Most of the plot is a bit of a cliché and somewhat predictable but fairly good for an author’s debut novel.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMmx4p759KlBer7gEOXHscl_ubJhipuTCJn0La9Di9K6joT98if5VKBXSnAln_LKD2ECW6oICrJooSS9470Rz8GHNG2y9S1I9J_tdMwcg1TxQ_mDvPYOrhXgUu9Rcbf6CLxydONjHJlXb/s1600/Never-wolf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMmx4p759KlBer7gEOXHscl_ubJhipuTCJn0La9Di9K6joT98if5VKBXSnAln_LKD2ECW6oICrJooSS9470Rz8GHNG2y9S1I9J_tdMwcg1TxQ_mDvPYOrhXgUu9Rcbf6CLxydONjHJlXb/s320/Never-wolf.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>Never Cry Werewolf </i>as you may have guessed has a werewolf in it but other than that, it’s mostly a normal teen fiction of not getting along with your parentals and learning that there is consequences for your actions. Even without the supernatural element I liked it though I quickly learned that a good bit of the dialogue (and inner monologue) make the teenagers sound even younger than their age which is 16 for Shelby and who knows for the rest of them. Also, did anyone else find Shelby a little whiny? She wasn’t horrible or anything, just a little annoying at times. The rest of the characters were great even if I never felt like I got to know or really connect with Shelby but I knew I would adore the boy when he was first introduced as the son of a rock star ‘rebel troublemaker common to every school’ but when he opened his mouth and a British accent came out… yum! I’m surprised at how much I did like Austin though since I’m not really a fan of werewolves and I make very few exceptions.<br />
<br />
All in all, I liked it. It was a clean little fluff book that only took me a few hours to read. It could have been better and I have to concur with all the other reviewers out there about that but I’m definitely still curious about that interesting ending, especially since it doesn’t look like there is going to be a sequel any time soon. The author did say she still has a lot more to tell about Austin and Shelby but it‘s been a little while since she published this and she has a totally different book coming out soon. What I would like to see is something told from Austin’s point of view. He was much more interesting than Shelby!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><u><b>Favorite Quotes</b></u></div><blockquote><b>All of a sudden, the entire line of kids clustered around me, talking about Re-Gen. Ariel hung back, seeming to be the only one not interested in Dad’s plastic surgery drug. Meanwhile, everyone was chattering about their parents’ plastic surgeons or someone they knew who wanted Re-Gen. It was creepy. At least at my school, everyone was over everyone else’s fame or money or whatever.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>Meanwhile, Vince was starting to freak. “What idiots! Charles is from Palo Alto, what does he know about the woods? I mean, camp sucks, but it’s not worth risking your life. And what’s up with the British dude? They’re gonna get eaten by a bear or something.”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>The growling started again, sounding closer.</b><b>Crap. Something *was* following me. Something that thought I looked delicious and didn’t know about my bladder issues. I was so dead. I was going to literally pee my pants and die. Or be eaten-- which is totally worse.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>“She sent me here to get rid of me. I guess I really am normal.”</b><b>Ariel shrugged, and we started walking again. “You know, I don’t think anyone is normal anymore,” she said. “Everyone’s got something weird about them. Something they think they ought to hide.”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>Austin glanced away, toward the campfire, and then, turning back to me, said, “Shelby, I’m a lycanthrope. What you’d call a werewolf. It runs in my family.”</b><b>I swear my ears started ringing. “Holy crap. I thought you said you were a *werewolf*. What is wrong with my ears?”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>“I’ve had too many of these ‘trust me’ talks lately in my life,” I said. “I don’t trust you. I don’t trust anybody. I don’t even trust myself.” Ooh, that was weird to say aloud. I wondered where that’d come from, but somehow I knew deep down it was so true.</b></blockquote><br />
<b>First Paragraph:</b> Moonlight has special powers. Even in Beverly Hills, where everything sparkles whether it's real or fake, there's something magic about that big full moon. It can make you act crazy, take a risk you'd never consider in the daylight, or even fall completely head over heels. Moonlight can totally change your life. And it all starts so simply.<br />
<br />
<i>Heather Davis Online</i><br />
<a href="http://www.heatherdavisbooks.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://yawriters.blogspot.com/">Buzz Girls Blog</a><br />
<br />
<b>Interviews</b><br />
<a href="http://www.heatherdavisbooks.com/fun.html">On Author's Site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.blogwithbite.com/2009/09/interview-with-heather-davis-author-of.html">Blog With Bite</a><br />
<a href="http://readergirlreviews.blogspot.com/2009/10/wwday2-interview-with-heather-davis.html">Reader Girl Reviews</a><br />
<a href="http://www.zoesbookreviews.com/2009/06/interview-with-heather-davis.html">Zoe’s Book Reviews</a><br />
<a href="http://shalondasblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/spotlight-on-heather-davis.html">Shalonda’s Blog</a><br />
<br />
Source: Personal copy courtesy of author from <u><a href="http://yawriters.blogspot.com/">Buzz Girls Blog</a></u>, autographed paperbackLadytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-31587549323204121522011-02-18T20:07:00.000-06:002011-02-18T20:07:09.529-06:00Taking Chances in Tuscany<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbt_2dVR9OT9IQ9nwH74UytgLPICfYVLS5dW23b2F2wSH6jo5BSwx9nYJfPQ3bZLb0dKlviv7dhMUfzxpkRBK_-L33As7mlmTR7GZOO8vu3x6o_-FZRMecqKGtPiSDM7sqrxZALMR2UeYi/s1600/Tuscan-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbt_2dVR9OT9IQ9nwH74UytgLPICfYVLS5dW23b2F2wSH6jo5BSwx9nYJfPQ3bZLb0dKlviv7dhMUfzxpkRBK_-L33As7mlmTR7GZOO8vu3x6o_-FZRMecqKGtPiSDM7sqrxZALMR2UeYi/s320/Tuscan-main.jpg" width="215" /></a></div><blockquote><i>From the studio that brought you Sweet Home Alabama comes the extraordinary romantic comedy starring Academy Award nominee Diane Lane. Based on the #1 New York Times best-selling book, Under the Tuscan Sun follows San Francisco writer Frances Mayes (Lane) to Italy as a good friend offers her a special gift-- ten days in Tuscany. Once there, she is captivated by its beauty and warmth, and impulsively buys an aging, but very charming villa. Fully embracing new friends and local color, she finds herself immersed in a life-changing adventure filled with enough unexpected surprises, laughter friendship and romance to restore her new home-- and her belief in second chances.</i></blockquote><b>Title:</b> Under the Tuscan Sun<br />
<b>Release: </b>September 26, 2003<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Drama, Comedy, Romance<br />
<b>MPAA Rating:</b> PG-13<br />
<b>Based On:</b> Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy by <a href="http://www.francesmayesbooks.com/">Frances Mayes</a><br />
<b>Writer:</b> Audrey Wells<br />
<b>Director:</b> Audrey Wells<br />
<b>Music By:</b> Christophe Beck<br />
<b>Produced By:</b> Tom Sternberg and Audrey Wells<br />
<b>Studio:</b> Walt Disney Productions<br />
<b>Distributed By:</b> Touchstone Pictures<br />
<b>Run Time:</b> 113 minutes<br />
<br />
Audrey Wells; the director, the screenwriter, and the co-producer very loosely based her 2003 Italian movie <i>Under the Tuscan Sun </i>on the memoir by <a href="http://www.francesmayesbooks.com/">Frances Mayes</a>, <i>Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy</i>. Mayes’ bestselling book is about the author’s purchase and restoration of a house in Italy and using her background as a poet, gourmet cook, and travel writer she tells her story. Audrey Wells (somewhat edited) and combined this with her own ideas of a woman overcoming heartbreak to get this film.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRjGTDWSSP4v5EVcTrw208WXmxNySTWGmxzs5xo48NPls7D4D-_jXGl77AyNi5oSN4wbtr2apsER_004KSFOmyVfjIC9alBFoeEC1mUp8hbl0VcjMEQOvQ9Bb0U2tNPMB2Kr1gAj99py2f/s1600/under-the-tuscan-sun-5-475x319.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRjGTDWSSP4v5EVcTrw208WXmxNySTWGmxzs5xo48NPls7D4D-_jXGl77AyNi5oSN4wbtr2apsER_004KSFOmyVfjIC9alBFoeEC1mUp8hbl0VcjMEQOvQ9Bb0U2tNPMB2Kr1gAj99py2f/s200/under-the-tuscan-sun-5-475x319.jpg" width="200" /></a>A beautiful movie that is an ‘internal adventure story,’ filmed entirely in Italy with a mostly Italian crew (there’s only a handful of American actors total once they get to Italy) except for one day in the director’s home town of San Francisco which takes place in the early part of the film. The villa Frances buys in the film is called <a href="http://www.thetuscansun.com/">Bramasole</a> which means yearning for the sun. Though it is based on a real place, filming was in another location nearby in Villa Laura. The lovely scenery of the Tuscany countryside, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positano">Positano</a>, and a little bit of Rome carry a good bit of this film with the esteemed Diane Lane carrying the other half. I believe this is one of her best roles and she’s absolutely gorgeous in that white dress and in several other scenes as well. The directors said in an interview that she had her in mind all along for the role of Frances.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNeeafZPEqXJs0ZVs2REAs-SzzpHYdivjvcd5E4PnXOkk2vHzEUVCZHprMXkYCy2J1MdqE-wlu_kLL5B_uSH1XwtbGru02qdyxH36t7wA220cuhSgYIOQ_mE-cnjcQbMvEmpZhZrSEq13a/s1600/tuscan-katherine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNeeafZPEqXJs0ZVs2REAs-SzzpHYdivjvcd5E4PnXOkk2vHzEUVCZHprMXkYCy2J1MdqE-wlu_kLL5B_uSH1XwtbGru02qdyxH36t7wA220cuhSgYIOQ_mE-cnjcQbMvEmpZhZrSEq13a/s200/tuscan-katherine.jpg" width="200" /></a>Wells said <i>Under the Tuscan Sun</i> is, “about forcing yourself to engage even when you don’t feel ready to. About taking a step even before you’re ready to take a step because if you wait until you’re ready, you’re never going to do it.” There’s even the obvious metaphor for Frances that she’s remodeling a house while she’s trying to remodel her life. Just as she brings life back to the house by the end and gets everything she wished for (though she doesn‘t realize it), she’s brought herself back to life as well, mostly through the people she encounters in Tuscany. There’s actually very little time spent on the remodeling itself in the film though as it really wasn’t the director’s focus.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ3i_GFON80GZISGM1gHvBi5vjpnQsfAeVuCoIjXoWNWqYCMOf1KNnc6IsL_ETAPSRt-GKe_Rc3ZBy1cQnLwDqQNMjfuoOsmcrUfNOXPdFZAko71yEUbWij_YJGZ4ua0xdxSvr0p-sDNYp/s1600/Tuscan-girls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ3i_GFON80GZISGM1gHvBi5vjpnQsfAeVuCoIjXoWNWqYCMOf1KNnc6IsL_ETAPSRt-GKe_Rc3ZBy1cQnLwDqQNMjfuoOsmcrUfNOXPdFZAko71yEUbWij_YJGZ4ua0xdxSvr0p-sDNYp/s200/Tuscan-girls.jpg" width="200" /></a>There are parts of <i>Under the Tuscan Sun</i> that I just didn’t like but they were few and far between. When my friend told me she was going to Italy next month, one of the first things I thought of was this film though I hadn’t seen it since it’s original premiere. Watching it again I was struck by the fact that though it’s beautiful and even funny at times, a good bit of it was lonely and sad. I almost wish that the director had thought to add more of the cooking and restoration scenes. Maybe even have Frances spend more time out and about in Italy. Then again, it would have changed a good bit of the tone of the film if that had happened.<br />
<br />
The people in this film are only secondary to Frances’ journey of self-happiness but everyone has such a distinct personality. I liked Frances’ friend Patty that she left behind in San Francisco. She’s played by Sandra Oh whom is the lesbian partner of Kate Walsh (who plays Grace). They are probably most well-known today as their characters Addison Montgomery and Cristina Yang on <i><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFCNUW0TfqE">Grey’s Anatomy</a></i> but here they play a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUQFaYQzMD8">couple</a>. Wells said she included this couple because she didn’t want to show just men breaking women’s hearts and that “heartbreak is an equal opportunity killer.”<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSPQCGN3PqYPXY_PG2SmOR0pcjyUlR3Oab7z4o65xMQ4Bu-MI0Ym2SlJIiljZIMGrOcMReYMnx92ayJ-2B_28PYfk9ozKA1oD5bc1ZHeQnNQAXnONPPUeGPaj30Ri-Qxzyx5gI14s8bTgR/s1600/Tuscan-white+dress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSPQCGN3PqYPXY_PG2SmOR0pcjyUlR3Oab7z4o65xMQ4Bu-MI0Ym2SlJIiljZIMGrOcMReYMnx92ayJ-2B_28PYfk9ozKA1oD5bc1ZHeQnNQAXnONPPUeGPaj30Ri-Qxzyx5gI14s8bTgR/s200/Tuscan-white+dress.jpg" width="200" /></a>It’s the people of Tuscany and the family she finds among her new friends that’s such a great part of the film however. Although she seems a little crazy, Katharine (played by Broadway Tony winner Lindsay Duncan) is my favorite character in this film. She’s supposed to embody the director Federico Fellini’s women, and some of her costumes are replicas from his films. I just love the very first shot of her rubbing the baby duck on her face. Ironically it wasn’t this scene but the very next one that was the only part of the film I remembered from the first time I saw it which is Frances writing a postcard for one of the guys she’s on the tour with. Though he didn’t like what she had written, it’s what was probably the most evocative part of the film for me. It almost certainly comes as no surprise to anyone that it’s verbatim from the actual book (which I still haven‘t read).<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW2qSTWvWwTDjTT-mIesi7gRFviXH2M8M9iUr35OzoDylaf6yX4LY2XEh45tC5JoxFL8LcoVOYz4bA7sFQ2ayUVMt6oPFLQRDRk2Jt2WEgl5iL18LBca3-Qc_3-2IUVKRneAcQQWkrlquj/s1600/Tuscan-diane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW2qSTWvWwTDjTT-mIesi7gRFviXH2M8M9iUr35OzoDylaf6yX4LY2XEh45tC5JoxFL8LcoVOYz4bA7sFQ2ayUVMt6oPFLQRDRk2Jt2WEgl5iL18LBca3-Qc_3-2IUVKRneAcQQWkrlquj/s200/Tuscan-diane.jpg" width="171" /></a><br />
Audrey Wells did a lot for this film to be made and though she had worked on other things before (she wrote the screenplay for <i>The Truth About Cats & Dogs</i>, <i>The Kid</i>, and helped write <i>George of the Jungle</i> which appears as a clip in the film) this was only her second film that she has ever directed. She did an amazing job for as much as she put into this movie. I thought that she somewhat succeeded in keeping parts of it light and funny while still having the core of the film be about the main character’s inner pain. Believe me, Frances goes through a lot of pain in this film. As soon as she’s ready to pull herself out of the mud, she’s knocked back into it more often than not, which really bothered me. Thankfully, the film ends on a high note though. Ms. Wells says, “The story that Senor Martini tells Frances about the train tracks built across the Semmering pass [see below in quotes] is a true story, related to me by Austrian father. And if I had never heard that story I don’t know if I would have ever written this movie. It was the springboard and actually the reason for the film.” <i>Under the Tuscan Sun</i> was nominated for several minor awards and Diane Lane received a Golden Globe nomination but she nor the film won anything.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote>Patti: Can you star-69 Italy? </blockquote><blockquote>Katherine: It's a nice little villa. Rather run down, but redeemable... Are you going to buy it?<br />
Frances: The way my life is currently going, that would be a terrible idea.<br />
Katherine: Mm, terrible idea... Don't you just love those? </blockquote><blockquote>Katherine: Regrets are a waste of time. They're the past crippling you in the present. </blockquote><blockquote>Martini: Signora, between Austria and Italy, there is a section of the Alps called the Semmering. It is an impossibly steep, very high part of the mountains. They built a train track over these Alps to connect Vienna and Venice. They built these tracks even before there was a train in existence that could make the trip. They built it because they knew some day, the train would come. </blockquote><br />
<i>Find Under the Tuscan Sun Online</i><br />
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0328589/">Imdb</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Under_the_Tuscan_Sun_(film)">Wikipedia</a><br />
<br />
<b>Links</b><br />
<a href="http://www.thetuscansun.com/">Bramasole</a>, Home of the author<br />
<a href="http://cortona.tuscantreasures.net/cortinfo.html#news">Cortona Information</a> (setting)<br />
<br />
<b>Interview</b><br />
Diane Lane and Audrey Wells with <a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/1782">Charlie Rose</a> (video)<br />
<br />
<b><u>Related Reviews</u></b><br />
<b>Diane Lane- Frances</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/11/anywhere-is-possible.html">Jumper</a> (2008)- Mary Rice<br />
<b>Don McManus- Nasty Man (early in film, bad review man)</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/09/history-mystery.html">National Treasure</a> (2004)- Dr. Stan Herbert<br />
<br />
Trailer<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="249" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/vdJGMZDY0-8" title="YouTube video player" width="460"></iframe>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-16492956426099524582011-02-13T14:24:00.005-06:002011-02-13T23:07:43.817-06:00No One Cares Except the Hitwoman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-gx_28FFsq1iQk10gAP0GcgTB9EeF_VTmZRNY5sh3XI4Zre5cXqtwhobSwnpcdgdYue6aOpF5zWOx0j7YQfwGRweGljN1WXuGNKvFaZI25zEHaXLjBhUAwaggvzVnWKv1ZLZW-kbIUY7h/s1600/Broken-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-gx_28FFsq1iQk10gAP0GcgTB9EeF_VTmZRNY5sh3XI4Zre5cXqtwhobSwnpcdgdYue6aOpF5zWOx0j7YQfwGRweGljN1WXuGNKvFaZI25zEHaXLjBhUAwaggvzVnWKv1ZLZW-kbIUY7h/s320/Broken-main.jpg" width="194" /></a></div><blockquote><i>The author of the acclaimed Women of the Otherworld series returns with her latest novel featuring an exciting heroine with a lethal hidden talent. This time she’s hot on the trail of a young woman no one else cares about—and a killer who’s bound to strike again.</i></blockquote><blockquote><i>Nadia Stafford isn’t your typical nature lodge owner. An ex-cop with a legal code all her own, she’s known only as “Dee” to her current employer: a New York crime family that pays her handsomely to bump off traitors. But when Nadia discovers that a troubled teenage employee and her baby have vanished in the Canadian woods, the memory of a past loss comes back with a vengeance and her old instincts go into overdrive.</i> </blockquote><blockquote><i>With her enigmatic mentor, Jack, covering her back, Nadia unearths sinister clues that point to an increasingly darker and deadlier mystery. Now, with her obsession over the case deepening, the only way Nadia can right the wrongs of the present is to face her own painful ghosts—and either bury them for good, or die trying. Because in her book everyone deserves a chance. And everyone deserves justice.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> Made to Be Broken<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/">Kelley Armstrong</a><br />
<b>Series: </b>Nadia Stafford, Book 2<br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 2/6/11- 2/10/11<br />
<b>Published:</b> February 24, 2009<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Bantam<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 398<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Thriller<br />
<br />
Canadian-native author Kelley Armstrong has made a huge hit with her Women of the Otherworld series and recently with the Darkest Powers young adult series set in the same world as well. However, she also has a couple of other books that aren’t quite as well known though you won’t find anything supernatural in them. Featuring the ex-cop turned wilderness lodge owner/ hitwoman Nadia (Dee on the job) Stafford, there are currently only two books this series: <i>Exit Strategy</i> and <i>Made to Be Broken</i>, which was published two years later but takes place 6 months after the end of the previous book. There is a bit of a set up for a third novel though it hasn’t been announced as of yet.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuesM9jlI-75aL88tLnbpoqSTO-WNbDeiNIjzAfvT56mL6PdZGC4bwR2Fg6mZQcmlkH7yuc-Obdq7FIbmYv-NRjEguiF9PkSoXGqUUs4USD1-L4QQb-xwooP-WR7QJ1A91dr8x4MVXyDfw/s1600/Broken-lodge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuesM9jlI-75aL88tLnbpoqSTO-WNbDeiNIjzAfvT56mL6PdZGC4bwR2Fg6mZQcmlkH7yuc-Obdq7FIbmYv-NRjEguiF9PkSoXGqUUs4USD1-L4QQb-xwooP-WR7QJ1A91dr8x4MVXyDfw/s200/Broken-lodge.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
The plot may not be quite as good in <i>Made to Be Broken</i> but there is much more character development here. We learn more about Nadia’s and Jack’s past, Quinn’s real life (and name), that Jack may just have romantic feelings towards Nadia, and a bit about just how far Nadia’s willing to push her personal line when it comes to killing the bad guys (though I expect it will be further pushed in future books). Evelyn even shows up for a token appearance a few times in the book (I could totally see Maggie Smith or Helen Mirren playing her if this was ever adapted for film) and though we don’t learn much more about her personally, she does seem a bit more driven to make Dee her protégé than she did before.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHsig90rctgpN2yvg_WLOvI-L_txd-O0cbjND8uksq-TRkkPgmAQdl0vwYvDmF-VOtZnJJOkOtIsG7k-5LzCujte2JBLP1WWg6wjMQVATRri8OhjFrbWd9H0sR7ri-q4wcaJgNadUBUDw1/s1600/Broken-baby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHsig90rctgpN2yvg_WLOvI-L_txd-O0cbjND8uksq-TRkkPgmAQdl0vwYvDmF-VOtZnJJOkOtIsG7k-5LzCujte2JBLP1WWg6wjMQVATRri8OhjFrbWd9H0sR7ri-q4wcaJgNadUBUDw1/s200/Broken-baby.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>At the beginning, I had a hard time really caring what happened to single teenage mother Sammi since I really didn’t care for her in the first place but then again, Nadia didn’t like her either. Of course, we learn very quickly that the reported sounds of a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPH9JL1itZs">cougar</a> nearby were actually Sammi screaming which leads Nadia to find her body buried in the woods, professionally killed and her baby was missing. This piqued my interest but I was much more into the story when Nadia starts to draw parallels between Sammi and Amy (we finally get to ‘meet’ her) that makes her more determined to discover what happened to Sammi and her baby and make them pay. The secondary plotline that comes over from the first book about what happened to Nadia’s cousin Amy is what I believe really drives Nadia do what she does. She wasn’t able to save her cousin Amy from being raped and killed when they were kids (she has really bad night terrors about it in both books but it gets worse here) and she still harbors guilt over that. Mostly what happened to Amy and Nadia was just alluded to in the previous story but it’s explored a bit more in <i>Made to Be Broken</i>.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1QLRGF3s0lgQau-j-kMITr3Zm1nLaLSoXcxdNG_VZiTtMqwKbPg7QalI2yuj7_E5-qFpeoJ8Lfe3HxAYGO9x_KXFXw_4wfp2Id9Q0ouTkabtWY8ZSdcSyE47tVOVImfqJ8nW-qpVveAp/s1600/Broken-sniper+scope.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1QLRGF3s0lgQau-j-kMITr3Zm1nLaLSoXcxdNG_VZiTtMqwKbPg7QalI2yuj7_E5-qFpeoJ8Lfe3HxAYGO9x_KXFXw_4wfp2Id9Q0ouTkabtWY8ZSdcSyE47tVOVImfqJ8nW-qpVveAp/s200/Broken-sniper+scope.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
Kelley Armstrong is never a slouch when it comes to amazingly vivid characters. Even the people who just pop into this book for a few pages like Emma and Owen; Nadia’s caretakers for the lodge, or even the nasty guests that she has to deal with that I think she should have taken Jack up on his offer to kill them and bury them in the woods. What I really love is her main characters though none of them are ever really described, not even Nadia really. They all have such interesting persona's and personalities. Jack is one of the best characters in this book so I love the romance angle that Armstrong tries to hint at (I really think Evelyn was right) and I hope she continues what she seems to have been trying to set up in the next book whenever that is published.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gb90kXgE0HdbrWqFZUqGgR1N_c6C60v9CmuBbJ0phEB-ZlksG-Yv3N7i1pcKw81iYNsgvmTmGrIizZ1ndobtrwCAgBy24IvQN5L7twK260g_5nF3JZ7yNWF6wdQcqAjeqygBPRbZubY3/s1600/Broken-baby2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gb90kXgE0HdbrWqFZUqGgR1N_c6C60v9CmuBbJ0phEB-ZlksG-Yv3N7i1pcKw81iYNsgvmTmGrIizZ1ndobtrwCAgBy24IvQN5L7twK260g_5nF3JZ7yNWF6wdQcqAjeqygBPRbZubY3/s200/Broken-baby2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Numerous people said that <i>Made to Be Broken</i> is better than <i>Exit Strategy</i>, in my humble opinion, they lied. Not that this was a bad book, it was pretty great (does Kelley Armstrong even write bad books?) however it wasn’t quite as good as the previous one. I will admit that the teen mother killing, baby kidnapping angle was interesting but it just doesn’t beat professional hitman turned serial killer. I think my main problem was that in <i>Exit Strategy</i>, Nadia got to slip into her alter ego Dee to catch and kill the bad guy where here, they are on Nadia’s turf for the “case” this time which means she has to play it a little safer. Thinking about there being professional hitman out there of Dee and Jack’s caliber gives me the creeps. It certainly makes me want to be even nicer when I interact with strangers!<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b>Favorite Quotes</b></div><blockquote><b>Most people in my profession would have a problem partnering with a cop, even one moonlighting as a hitman. I didn’t. I came from a long line of law-enforcement officers. My life goal had been to join that family tradition. And I had… until seven years ago, when I shot a suspect point-blank, made national headlines, and saw my life crash and burn.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>There are many names for what I do. Want to channel your inner Godfather? Go for hatchet man or hired gun. Prefer an air of legitimacy? Try professional killer or contract killer. Add an air of mystery and intrigue? Use assassin. I like it plain and simple. Hitman. Hitwoman or even hit-person, if one wants to be PC, but if you ask me, “politically correct” and “killer” are two terms never meant to go together.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>“That’s just it. No one’s interested. Her mother’s a real piece of work, so no big shock there, but nobody in town seems to care. These <i>aren’t</i> bad people. If it was Tess or Kira or any of the other girls in town, there would be search teams combing the forests. But with Sammi it seems like, even if something did happen, it’s…” I fumbled for words.</b><b>“Expected.”</b><b>I nodded. “Like she was heading that way all her life. Made to be broken.”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>For a professional killer, the line between caution and paranoia can be hard to find. One could argue that it doesn’t exist at all. Every hint of threat is worthy of investigation.</b><b>It’s not like robbing the corner store of dealing drugs behind the lodge. If I’m caught, I’ll never see the outside of a prison. That’s the cost of a job that pays the equivalent of a constable’s annual salary for a couple of four-day stints in New York every year.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b>“What epiphany? That you like killing bad guys? That it makes you feel good? Tell me something I don’t know. Something <i>you</i> don’t know.</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>After another minute came the faint sound of footsteps on the stairs. Now she needed to check who it was. There wasn’t a peephole. In this neighborhood, populated with upper-middle-class retirees, I’m sure there were lots of peepholes. But Evelyn would never get one installed for fear she’d be mistaken for something a lot worse than a cautious retired criminal: a nervous little old lady. And, besides, peepholes? This was the twenty-first century. For Evelyn, nothing short of a wireless, motion-detecting, auto tracking closed-circuit camera would do.</b></blockquote><br />
<u>Nadia Stafford Series</u><br />
1. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/05/hitwoman.html">Exit Strategy</a> (2007)<br />
2. Made to Be Broken (2009)<br />
3.<br />
<br />
<b>First Paragraph:</b> Below the belfry, the city sparkled, the late afternoon sun glinting off the skyscrapers, every surface dripping from a brief shower. A spectacular view… even through the scope of a sniper’s rifle.<br />
<br />
<i>Find Kelley Armstrong Online</i><br />
<a href="http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/kelleyarmstrong">Twitter</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/KelleyArmstrongAuthor">Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelley_Armstrong">Wikipedia</a><br />
<br />
<b>Link</b><br />
<a href="http://page69test.blogspot.com/2009/03/made-to-be-broken.html">Page 69 Test</a><br />
<br />
<u>Related Reviews</u><br />
<b>Women of the Otherworld Series</b><br />
1. Bitten (2001)<br />
2. Stolen (2002)<br />
3. Dime Store Magic (2003)<br />
4. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/witches-sorcerers-vampires-werewolves.html">Industrial Magic</a> (2004)<br />
5. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/afterlife-isnt-all-its-cracked-up-to-be.html">Haunted</a> (2005)<br />
6. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/even-pregnant-elena-still-kicks-butt.html">Broken</a> (2006)<br />
7. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/sometimes-people-are-purest-form-of.html">No Humans Involved </a>(2007)<br />
8. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/10/loving-chaos.html">Personal Demon</a> (2008)<br />
9. Living with the Dead (2008)<br />
10. Frost Bitten (2009)<br />
11. Waking the Witch (2010)<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Darkest Powers Series</span><br />
1. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/10/she-doesnt-want-to-see-dead-people.html">The Summoning</a> (2008)<br />
2. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/12/on-run.html">The Awakening</a> (2009)<br />
3. The Reckoning (2010)<br />
4. The Gathering (2011)<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Anthologies</span><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/four-otherworldly-tales-of-paranormal.html">Dates from Hell</a> (2006)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/04/after-i-dos.html">My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon</a> (2007)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/04/anthology-of-birthdays-with-bite.html">Many Bloody Returns</a> (2007)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/09/hwa-presents-anthology.html">Blood Lite</a> (2008)<br />
<br />
Source: Borrowed from library, paperback<br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Picture Explanations</span></i></b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Lodge Deck:</b> This could be the deck of Nadia’s wilderness retreat Red Oak up in Canada.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Baby:</b> Teenage mothers are being killed for their children</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Sniper Scope:</b> Nadia aka Dee, is a hit woman</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Holding Hands:</b> Two words: blackmarket babies.</span></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-48832247772931032662011-02-08T20:35:00.000-06:002011-02-08T20:35:20.529-06:00Still Armed. Still Dangerous. Still Got It.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvTlPSQoj2eGoon6BCuAQDBLCMEvN4MbxzSWxDKLG01loyPEzc6i5SSeMymwLBdZffYQMET_H5JRB7Ww1ri2Yg0Iq9OdG8k2by5uoNbUXMq_iM6xUPLWx1H5HUqYQmeGtvwCJYcHKNM8Ms/s1600/RED-main.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvTlPSQoj2eGoon6BCuAQDBLCMEvN4MbxzSWxDKLG01loyPEzc6i5SSeMymwLBdZffYQMET_H5JRB7Ww1ri2Yg0Iq9OdG8k2by5uoNbUXMq_iM6xUPLWx1H5HUqYQmeGtvwCJYcHKNM8Ms/s320/RED-main.png" width="215" /></a></div><blockquote><i>Frank (Bruce Willis) is a former black-ops CIA agent living a quiet life alone... until the day a hit squad shows up to kill him. With his identity compromised, Frank reassembles his old team-- Joe (Morgan Freeman), Marvin (John Malkovich), and Victoria (Helen Mirren)-- and sets out to prove that they still have a few tricks up their sleeves. Stand back and watch the bullets fly in this explosive action-comedy that critics call "a rip-roaring good time."</i></blockquote><b>Title:</b> RED<br />
<b>Release:</b> October 15, 2010<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Action Comedy<br />
<b>MPAA Rating:</b> PG-13<br />
<b>Based On:</b> RED by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner (graphic novel)<br />
<b>Writer:</b> Jon and Erich Hoeber<br />
<b>Director:</b> Robert Schwentke<br />
<b>Music By:</b> Christophe Beck<br />
<b>Produced By:</b> Lorenzo di Bonaventura<br />
<b>Studio:</b> di Bonaventura Pictures and DC Entertainment<br />
<b>Distributed By:</b> Summit Entertainment<br />
<b>Run Time:</b> 111 minutes<br />
<b><a href="http://www.red-themovie.com/">Official Site</a></b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiomCDq_U_2UCdharYI3B1enh2FBbL1gUZvT828ML_XrKWSCIxOfV-hf5tMh-1L6QPBmGYbSUPI9ioJ_jSZv-lwuPC96ukyiSnps7-83_1PY3WAimLHqPdDAFe8sAng4oln9QSs0qRv24Gh/s1600/RED-mirren+house.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiomCDq_U_2UCdharYI3B1enh2FBbL1gUZvT828ML_XrKWSCIxOfV-hf5tMh-1L6QPBmGYbSUPI9ioJ_jSZv-lwuPC96ukyiSnps7-83_1PY3WAimLHqPdDAFe8sAng4oln9QSs0qRv24Gh/s200/RED-mirren+house.png" width="200" /></a></div>“Some thumb-sucker came along and tagged [them] <i>RED</i>…. Retired: Extremely Dangerous.” Those retirees; Frank Moses, Victoria, Marvin Boggs, and Joe Matheson are a team of black ops assassins who used to work together and now that someone is gunning for one of them, they’re all back in the game. These retirees are played by award-winning, veteran actors Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren, John Malkovich, and Morgan Freeman. <i>RED</i> is a 2010 action comedy that was shot entirely in Canada and New Orleans, this star-studded film was nominated for the Golden Globe in the category Best Motion Picture- Musical or Comedy.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-A5g4UrvFnZO24DBJyGP1tuCJfLH3NTPUPjHrS0fopSw2eJDckWivkskM3LPJhAMuBM-vjY7jjxnrZFR-Ca-VxAhzbrH7pX736OGtSM32HVNS0kiKXCc6ziJtNTdXkB9NB9W3x3SGyD5M/s1600/RED-guys.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-A5g4UrvFnZO24DBJyGP1tuCJfLH3NTPUPjHrS0fopSw2eJDckWivkskM3LPJhAMuBM-vjY7jjxnrZFR-Ca-VxAhzbrH7pX736OGtSM32HVNS0kiKXCc6ziJtNTdXkB9NB9W3x3SGyD5M/s200/RED-guys.png" width="200" /></a></div>This was an incredibly fun movie with lots of shoot-out scenes (Helen Mirren with a machine gun is not to be missed), witty dialogue, and some great, but not overdone special effects (love that stepping out of a spinning car shooting move that Willis does) too. However, it was all of the brilliant actors that made me enjoy <i>RED</i> as much as I did. I would have enjoyed the movie more if they would have cut out the perquisite romance angle though. Willis’ character’s girlfriend Sarah Ross didn’t really add to the movie in my opinion. She stood around, sat around, and generally just got in the way. I honestly think Mary-Louise Parker tried her best but she isn’t given too much room to maneuver here. I actually wish that she had somehow been taken out of the film and Morgan Freeman’s character given more scenes than the few he does get since he’s one of my favorite actors. Personally, I thought the relationship between Sarah and Frank was slightly creepy as well. I was making the same face as John Malkovich’s character does at the end.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5sPbHitegVdzqln9-t2yHfUVp5kyvs8MtbivlTA3J7VpVYFbedG67pfUKMj6jNj_XZ7yG4BUJ9-rxUX2MGDGG2OqqmPJO_M0Pgm5jLgQC_tTCRGvdjfBmAH2aGMZTcPl-yYhGS5q1PosT/s1600/RED-mirren.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5sPbHitegVdzqln9-t2yHfUVp5kyvs8MtbivlTA3J7VpVYFbedG67pfUKMj6jNj_XZ7yG4BUJ9-rxUX2MGDGG2OqqmPJO_M0Pgm5jLgQC_tTCRGvdjfBmAH2aGMZTcPl-yYhGS5q1PosT/s200/RED-mirren.png" width="200" /></a></div>Speaking of which, the character Marvin Boggs played beautifully by John Malkovich. He’s this crazy guy whose not playing with a full deck and yet he’s funny, not goofy or slapstick (nothing in the film is like that even if it is a comedy). The character almost ended up being played by John C. Reilly but scheduling conflicts made it so the producers could go with their original choice. However, it was another character completely that became my favorite rather quickly and that was Helen Mirren who played Victoria. She’s so elegant, sophisticated, and deadly! Her demeanor is supposed to be based on Martha Stewart but I thought she pulled it off even better. While visually nothing like the original comic books and having moved away from the darker tone of them, <i>RED</i> doesn't completely forget it's source material either. The Victoria and Ivan (played by Brian Cox) story in the prequels is actually completed in the film though it would have been so much more interesting if someone could have found a way to work more of the others backstories in.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTMIPeBZBCiyMZ83y7dx0P0FoI5GY7SI7ajIyWpq4q9wcNwYgrTkFzIbfNPrLmmA0nmbfrRs5Btp38FS44wPNPEsSjVlbzqH4eoY5iLG5_kQIXLnTmOvz2Jee3GERR9OFS1llHyMzQHhC3/s1600/RED-Frank+and+Cooper.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTMIPeBZBCiyMZ83y7dx0P0FoI5GY7SI7ajIyWpq4q9wcNwYgrTkFzIbfNPrLmmA0nmbfrRs5Btp38FS44wPNPEsSjVlbzqH4eoY5iLG5_kQIXLnTmOvz2Jee3GERR9OFS1llHyMzQHhC3/s200/RED-Frank+and+Cooper.png" width="200" /></a>The main character I guess would be Frank Moses played by Bruce Willis and there’s just nothing I can say about him that I‘m sure hasn‘t been said before in every action film he‘s played in. Though Bruce Willis has done more than enough action films to qualify him to be in the action men hall of fame, I did think he brought a bit of difference to his role here because he’s not trying to deny that he’s getting old (or passing the reins to someone younger) but he can still kick young guy butt when needed to. Karl Urban (who plays the current CIA guy William Cooper whose been ordered to kill Willis’ character) gets his butt handed to him! Urban said that getting to fight Willis was “the most fun [he] had in years.”<br />
<br />
Overall, <i>RED</i> is a good story with fantastic actors that wasn’t quite as good as it could have been but still a lot of fun to watch. A sequel has been recently confirmed so who knows? Maybe it will be even better than this one by developing the remaining characters more. I just hope that the plot will be half as good as this one and of course that all of these fantastic actors will be coming back.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><b>Marvin Boggs: Do you know what's wrong with this country? </b><br />
<b>Sarah Ross: They all are trying to kill us? </b><br />
<b>Marvin Boggs: Exactly! </b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>Ivan Simanov: [sighs] I miss the old days. </b><br />
<b>Ivan Simanov: I haven't killed anyone in years. </b><br />
<b>Frank Moses: That's sad. </b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>Frank Moses: People get shot all the time. </b><br />
<b>Sarah Ross: No they don't. They get... paper cuts. </b><br />
<b>Marvin Boggs: ...I mostly get shot. </b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>Marvin Boggs: Why are you trying to kill me?</b><br />
<b>Frank Moses: Why would I be trying to kill you? </b><br />
<b>Marvin Boggs: Because the last time we met I tried to kill you.</b><br />
<b>Frank Moses: That was a long time ago.</b><br />
<b>Marvin Boggs: Some people hold onto things like that.</b><br />
<br />
<b><i>F</i></b><i style="font-weight: bold;">ind RED Online</i><br />
<a href="http://www.red-themovie.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1245526/">Imdb</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_(2010_film)">Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.reelzchannel.com/movie/279385/red">ReelzChannel</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/RED">Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://www.movieweb.com/movie/red-2010">Movieweb</a><br />
<br />
<b>Interviews</b><br />
Karl Urban on <a href="http://www.reelzchannel.com/movie-news/7122/karl-urban-discusses-beating-up-bruce-willis-in-his-somewhat-villainous-role-in-red/">ReelzChannel</a><br />
Helen Mirren on <a href="http://blog.moviefone.com/2010/10/15/helen-mirren-on-red-guns-and-harvey-pekar">Moviefone</a><br />
Ernest Borgnine on <a href="http://blog.moviefone.com/2010/08/25/ernest-borgnine-sag-award-interview">Moviefone</a><br />
Willis, Freeman, & Malkovich on <a href="http://www.moviefone.com/movie/red/10020540/video/red-unscripted-complete-interview/629233551001">Moviefone Unscripted</a> (video)<br />
Robert Schwentke (director) on <a href="http://www.iamrogue.com/news/interviews/item/1333-exclusive-interview-robert-schwentke-is-seeing-red.html">I Am Rogue</a><br />
Robert Schwentke on <a href="http://www.superherohype.com/features/articles/108773-exclusive-red-director-robert-schwentke">Superhero Hype</a><br />
Erich Hoeber & Jon Hoeber (screenplay writers) on <a href="http://www.movieweb.com/movie/red-2010/erich-hoeber-jon-hoeber-interview">Movieweb</a> (video)<br />
Warren Ellis (graphic novel author) on <a href="http://www.movieweb.com/movie/red-2010/warren-ellis-interview">Movieweb</a> (video)<br />
Mary-Louise Parker on <a href="http://www.thecinemasource.com/blog/interviews/mary-louise-parker-interview-for-red/">The Cinema Source</a><br />
<br />
Trailer:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="290" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/rMCh4etBbkU" title="YouTube video player" width="340"></iframe><br />
<br />
IGN Bruce Willis Interview:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="290" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/GEhN-sL7yE0" title="YouTube video player" width="340"></iframe><br />
<br />
ETC Red Carpet Interviews:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="290" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/4LTaXSmSMVg" title="YouTube video player" width="340"></iframe><br />
<br />
Cast Interview at Comic Con by EW:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="245" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BvvKZjp5U1k" title="YouTube video player" width="360"></iframe><br />
<br />
<u>Related Reviews</u><br />
<b>Bruce Willis- Frank Moses</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/01/yippee-ki-yay.html">Die Hard Franchise</a> (1988, 1990, 1995, 2007)- John McClane<br />
<b>Brian Cox- Ivan Simanov</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/bourne-trilogy.html">The Bourne Identity & Supremacy</a> (2002, 2004)- Ward Abbott<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/killer-casanova.html">Kiss the Girls</a> (1997)- Chief Hatfield, Durham P.D.<br />
<b>Morgan Freeman- Joe Matheson</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/choosing-your-destiny.html">Wanted</a> (2008)- Sloan<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/11/watch-before-kicking-bucket.html">The Bucket List</a> (2007)- Carter<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/killer-casanova.html">Kiss the Girls</a> (1997)- Dr. Alex Cross<br />
<b>Karl Urban- William Cooper</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/bourne-trilogy.html">The Bourne Supremacy</a> (2004)- Kirill<br />
<b>Helen Mirren- Victoria</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/09/history-mystery.html">National Treasure 2</a> (2007)- Emily AppletonLadytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-20596442891294215692011-02-06T11:52:00.003-06:002011-02-07T13:24:03.197-06:00Magic and Romance<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikOSpyrP3TZNLxDF_lpLTbcrdaQXpRl_4jDo3S10BhatfSJvvsyPX7bpJJsdJ7_uYY4Ue3anPe-dfQsAXfBBVldo_8obT2PnVH-MSYShW39hQo_M1-eC-cng54w95Em1f88tsRbZj9Ut4m/s1600/witches-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikOSpyrP3TZNLxDF_lpLTbcrdaQXpRl_4jDo3S10BhatfSJvvsyPX7bpJJsdJ7_uYY4Ue3anPe-dfQsAXfBBVldo_8obT2PnVH-MSYShW39hQo_M1-eC-cng54w95Em1f88tsRbZj9Ut4m/s320/witches-main.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><blockquote><i>Deep in the heart of Oxford’s Bodleian Library, scholar Diana Bishop requests a manuscript called Ashmole 782 in the course of her research. Coming from an old and distinguished lineage of witches, Diana senses that the ancient book might be bound up with magic-- but she herself wants nothing to do with sorcery; and after making a few notes on its curious images, she banishes it quickly back to the stacks. But what she doesn’t know is that the old alchemical text has been lost for centuries, and its sudden appearance has set a fantastical underworld stirring. Soon, a distracting horde of daemons, witches, and vampires descends upon the Bodleian’s reading rooms. One of these creatures is Matthew Clairmont, an enigmatic and eminent geneticist, practitioner of yoga, and wine connoisseur-- and also a vampire with a keen interest in Ashmole 782.</i></blockquote><blockquote><i>Equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense, A Discovery of Witches is a novel of epic scope, traveling from the cobbled streets of Oxford to the chateaus and mountains of the Auvergne to a small town in upstate New York. It also takes us into a rich fifteen- hundred-year history that spans Clovis and the Crusades, the Knights Templar, and the American Revolution. As Matthew and Diana’s alliance deepens into intimacy, Diana must come to terms with age-old taboos and her own family’s conflicted history-- and she must learn where the modern woman she is meets the source of ancient power that is her legacy. With a scholar’s depth and the touch of a great storyteller, Deborah Harkness has woven a tale of passion and obsession; the collision of magic, alchemy, and science; and the closely guarded secrets of an enchanted world.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> A Discovery of Witches<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://deborahharkness.com/">Deborah Harkness</a><br />
<b>Series:</b> All Souls Trilogy, Book 1<br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 1/17/11- 1/27/11<br />
<b>Published:</b> February 8, 2011<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Viking<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 579<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Fiction- Romance/ Paranormal<br />
<b><a href="http://www.adiscoveryofwitches.co.uk/">Official UK Website</a></b><br />
<br />
From Romeo and Juliet to Edward and Bella, the forbidden love story never seems to get old and Deborah Harkness’ <i>A Discovery of Witches</i> is no exception. Already this lush, well-researched book has gotten great buzz from a variety of sources, including pieces in <a href="http://www.oprah.com/book/A-Discovery-of-Witches-A-Novel-by-Deborah-Harkness">O</a>, The Oprah Magazine and <a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20460950,00.html">Entertainment Weekly</a> and it is to be translated into 32 languages as well. Not bad for a professor of history at the University of Southern California’s fictional debut. <i>A Discovery of Witches</i> is the first book in a trilogy.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSUJ5EejVKZK2Y8Lh64d-vbeI-6-X4hzYpKJxsIkMFtEbntg6r-OaB0aEInH3t2uVRE27h54Vzk-cFJTiaPk76RyUXoGCKbNBfecB2JqSznFu8CASF7yqIwrrKsSVdA91m7nEPn952T0Yp/s1600/witches-+duke+humphrey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSUJ5EejVKZK2Y8Lh64d-vbeI-6-X4hzYpKJxsIkMFtEbntg6r-OaB0aEInH3t2uVRE27h54Vzk-cFJTiaPk76RyUXoGCKbNBfecB2JqSznFu8CASF7yqIwrrKsSVdA91m7nEPn952T0Yp/s200/witches-+duke+humphrey.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<i>A Discovery of Witches</i> is really only a love story on the surface between a vampire and a reluctant witch (whose ancestor was<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridget_Bishop"> Bridget Bishop</a>) who is coming into her powers after burying them so long, but it's actually so much more complicated than that. The story is equally about evolution, extinction, and racism (none of the supernatural races are supposed to mix) while sprinkled throughout are history, alchemy, and several beautiful settings too. It’s also equally about a lost manuscript called Ashmole 782 (which is an actual lost manuscript in real life, though Harkness’ contents are fiction) that only Diana has been able to get her hands on which peaks the interest of all three of the supernatural races who have been trying to get to it for years. Oh, and you can’t forget Matthew’s (and the author’s) love of wine either. What I would like to know is where in the world did this yoga thing come from? I’ve never heard of a vampire that does yoga. Much less witches and daemons too! <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQB99RyBVM1yMA-dyy9hp8n7e2I2A1YyLRGD28S2LpN2yeYZZPtXw93rzL-h7i9RFBqykWntxELTz7VWm7by6dpbKMMwREW-T6-XZ6EpLpXl-m8md9q4K6ovSwifZVjIOTPb0kU4G-3gbt/s1600/Witches-rowing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQB99RyBVM1yMA-dyy9hp8n7e2I2A1YyLRGD28S2LpN2yeYZZPtXw93rzL-h7i9RFBqykWntxELTz7VWm7by6dpbKMMwREW-T6-XZ6EpLpXl-m8md9q4K6ovSwifZVjIOTPb0kU4G-3gbt/s200/Witches-rowing.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>My initial impression of Diana is that she’s a bit of a loner and has the potential to be pretty powerful if she chooses to stop letting magic scare her so badly which is what she tries to do throughout the entire book. I loved all of the powers Diana kept discovering in herself, especially the ones where she can speak to the animals, ghosts, and control the elements too, even if the witchwater scene reminded me of Bella in <i>New Moon</i>. My only real issue was that Diana continued to let so many of the creatures bully her and calling in Matthew instead of taking care of it or even equally helping out. I’m not a big fan of a man (vampire in this case) fighting a woman’s battles for her when she’s capable of doing it herself. The male character Matthew took a bit of getting used to and I’m still not really sure what to think about him. He’s quite temperamental and some of his mood swings would give a pregnant woman whiplash though thankfully that starts to taper off some towards the end.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6wdYZs6hqlAssP-ca3QZh1XOtxF9oMFMkfYCB9oTUIzCtL9J1d3MUYFKU5uig87dI_cYaho1hJZDfct_paAlHf3oRwy1ER4KPOG0v_4sgxT7iQgyWs8s6owvTfod1aovKQpZRmjXz9sIq/s1600/witches-+All+Souls+College.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6wdYZs6hqlAssP-ca3QZh1XOtxF9oMFMkfYCB9oTUIzCtL9J1d3MUYFKU5uig87dI_cYaho1hJZDfct_paAlHf3oRwy1ER4KPOG0v_4sgxT7iQgyWs8s6owvTfod1aovKQpZRmjXz9sIq/s200/witches-+All+Souls+College.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The author said that she came up with the idea for book by asking herself: “If there really are vampires, what do they do for a living?” Heroine name came second. "It's pretty hard not to notice the popular preoccupation with witches, vampires, and things that go bump in the night. But we aren't the first to be fascinated with these creatures. Today, we often imagine them into fantastic other worlds, but the people I study believed that such magical beings were living alongside them in this world. So I started thinking, if there are vampires and witches, what do they do for a living—and what strange stories do humans tell to explain away the evidence of their presence? <i>A Discovery of Witches </i>began with the answers to those questions as I essentially reimagined our modern world through the eyes of medieval and Renaissance people."<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8b2Ahe0gm13gtoiIe_2ngysAEQyNGqPRS_hLgkYYykgZodGgj-qsC3L_y1RDB9WmkX_YqFCCs9YK_Lkj5ievXFwDwjEo3aNbPYpDTOzK7blnsY7O6MK1iazLGMRDO6ATsEMNhgJXWFQm/s1600/witches-Andalusian_Horse+rakasa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8b2Ahe0gm13gtoiIe_2ngysAEQyNGqPRS_hLgkYYykgZodGgj-qsC3L_y1RDB9WmkX_YqFCCs9YK_Lkj5ievXFwDwjEo3aNbPYpDTOzK7blnsY7O6MK1iazLGMRDO6ATsEMNhgJXWFQm/s200/witches-Andalusian_Horse+rakasa.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Out of the three creatures described in book (witches, daemons, and vampires) the witches are what fascinated me the most. The vampires are interesting- especially how logical they are: no fangs, sunlight isn’t an issue, enhances senses, and immortality- in that the ones in this story had much to do with several historical people and events but the daemons weren't really explained well since we only slightly get to know Hamish, Sophie, and Nathaniel. And they were only in a few chapters. I have high expectations for the next book in this trilogy since the book leaves off on a bit of a cliffhanger. I hope we get to see more of the Congregation because I really am curious if there isn't some good people to be found in it since all we see in this book is the evil.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim1qw3nv6Ix119nWOiXLcPKFQQtYiDe1sRHmxAozKyFwT_WP9-f0NShiq5TPOIA5bOFHKzUCpM4wMZe93yjmc8BOUf2RdiCjzeUqnE-HQB0PvwkxkvlDDli1c0-KZsD_8d5fOOEfchO0BR/s1600/witches-+old+wine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim1qw3nv6Ix119nWOiXLcPKFQQtYiDe1sRHmxAozKyFwT_WP9-f0NShiq5TPOIA5bOFHKzUCpM4wMZe93yjmc8BOUf2RdiCjzeUqnE-HQB0PvwkxkvlDDli1c0-KZsD_8d5fOOEfchO0BR/s200/witches-+old+wine.jpg" width="200" /></a>Written in about a year; though it takes place in 40 days (“I think the only thing we’ve escaped is a plague of locusts.”), this book has got the feel of a good urban fantasy adventure story woven in with the aura of a great contemporary classic. Think an adult Twilight with a little Harry Potter thrown in for fun yet much more sophisticated. Considering that this ends right when it was really getting good, I’m definitely going to be first in line when the sequel comes out!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><u><b>Favorite Quotes</b></u></div><blockquote><b>Even at a safe distance, this manuscript was challenging me-- threatening the walls I’d erected to separate my career as a scholar from my birthright as the last of the Bishop witches. Here, with my hard- earned doctorate, tenure, and promotions in hand and my career beginning to blossom, I’d renounced my family’s heritage and created a life that depended on reason and scholarly abilities, not inexplicable hunches and spells.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b><br />
</b><b>Aunt Sarah had always told me that magic was a gift. If it was, it had strings attached that bound me to all of the Bishop witches who had come before me. There was a price to be paid for using this inherited magical power and for working the spells and charms that made up the witches’ carefully guarded craft. By opening Ashmole 782, I’d breached the wall that divided my magic from my scholarship. But back on the right side of it again, I was more determined than ever to remain there.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b><br />
</b><b>Witches aren’t the only creatures sharing the world with humans, however. There are also daemons-- creative, artistic creatures who walk a tightrope between madness and genius. “Rock stars and serial killers” was how my aunt described these strange, perplexing beings. And there are vampires, ancient and beautiful, who feed on blood and will charm you utterly if they don’t kill you first.</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b><br />
</b><b>“History only became more challenging when it became less neat. Every time I pick up a book or a document from the past, I’m in a battle with people who lived hundreds of years ago. They have their secrets and obsessions-- all the things they won’t or can’t reveal. It’s my job to discover and explain them.”</b><b><br />
“What if you can’t? What if they defy explanation?”</b><b><br />
“That’s never happened,” I said after considering his question. “At least I don’t think it has. All you have to do is be a good listener. Nobody really wants to keep secrets, not even the dead. People leave clues everywhere, and if you pay attention, you can piece them together.”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b><br />
</b><b>“I don’t like this one bit,” my aunt finally said in a tone that suggested the world was falling apart. “Bewitched books? Daemons following you? Vampires taking you to yoga? Witches threatening a Bishop? Witches are supposed to avoid notice, Diana. Even the humans are going to know something’s going on.”</b> </blockquote><blockquote><b><br />
</b><b>The enormity of what it meant to love a vampire struck home as I slid the account book back onto the shelf. It was not just his age that posed the difficulties, or his dining habits, or the fact that he had killed humans and would do so again. It was the secrets.</b></blockquote><br />
<u>All Souls Trilogy</u><br />
1. A Discovery of Witches (2011)<br />
2.<br />
3.<br />
<br />
<b>First Paragraph:</b> The leather-bound volume was nothing remarkable. To an ordinary historian, it would have looked no different from hundreds of other manuscripts in Oxford’s Bodleian Library, ancient and worn. But I knew there was something odd about it from the moment I collected it.<br />
<br />
<b><i>Find Deborah Harkness Online</i></b><br />
<a href="http://deborahharkness.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Deborah-Harkness/163048101811">Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/DebHarkness#">Twitter</a><br />
Author’s Blog: <a href="http://goodwineunder20.blogspot.com/">Good Wine Under $20</a><br />
<br />
<b>Links</b><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22882167@N07/sets/72157623064480448/">DOW Tour of Oxford</a> (photos if Matthew & Diana's world)<br />
<a href="http://booktrib.com/2011/01/deborah-harkness-the-mysterious-process-of-writing/">Book Trib</a> (Guest post)<br />
<a href="http://janicu.wordpress.com/2011/01/25/deborah-harkness-on-her-book-a-discovery-of-witches-w-giveaway/">Janicu’s Book Blog</a> (Guest post)<br />
<br />
<b>Interviews</b><br />
<a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/02/03/what-would-witches-and-vampires-do-for-a-living/">Wall Street Journal Speakeasy</a><br />
<a href="http://www.lovevampires.com/deborahharkness.html">Love Vampires</a><br />
<a href="http://us.penguingroup.com/static/rguides/us/discovery_of_witches.html">Penguin</a> (Q&A, reading guide, etc)<br />
<a href="http://www.vampires.com/giveaway-and-exclusive-interview-with-deborah-harkness/">Vampires.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.nightowlreviews.com/nor/Interviews/Tamazon-interviews-Deborah-Harkness-on-Jan-28-2011.aspx">Night Owl Reviews</a><br />
<a href="http://crystalbookreviews.blogspot.com/2011/01/interview-with-deborah-harkness-author.html">Crystal Book Reviews</a><br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="245" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/naIUATVxRAA" title="YouTube video player" width="360"></iframe><br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="245" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/AddA1OAyyrQ" title="YouTube video player" width="360"></iframe><br />
<br />
Source: Personal copy, I was contacted by a representative for the publisher (hardcover)<br />
<br />
<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Picture Explanations</span></i></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b><a href="http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/bodley">Duke Humphrey’s Library</a>:</b> Diana discovers Ashmole 782 here as well as meets Matthew here.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Rowing on the River Thames:</b> Diana rows when she’s not jogging or doing yoga for her exercise. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>All Soul's College:</b> Academic research oriented college, with no undergraduates that Matthew belongs to.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Horse:</b> Once they get to Sept Tours, Diana spends a lot of time riding horses.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Old Wine:</b> Matthew is a wine connoisseur and has tons of really old wine</span>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-72416676787614551462010-10-09T17:44:00.002-05:002011-02-13T23:10:00.098-06:00Angel in Love<blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh72AYJFbrh-SwsPcExnsejNryeu0oUCV3nCO462yomOjqPmBkUSAtnfL2lLwTKOb61jpUvzZ19xxxDApMI0UlkblqskrOFnJoK0cifZDV052qfyxxh7GXyObtPsid1nH0LzNmfZgpo8nDy/s1600/Fallen-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh72AYJFbrh-SwsPcExnsejNryeu0oUCV3nCO462yomOjqPmBkUSAtnfL2lLwTKOb61jpUvzZ19xxxDApMI0UlkblqskrOFnJoK0cifZDV052qfyxxh7GXyObtPsid1nH0LzNmfZgpo8nDy/s320/Fallen-main.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><i>There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at Sword & Cross boarding school in Savannah. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are screwups, and security cameras watch every move.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>Except Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce-- he goes out of his way to make that very clear. But she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, Luce has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret... even if it kills her.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page-turning thriller and the ultimate love story.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title: </b>Fallen<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://laurenkatebooks.net/">Lauren Kate</a><br />
<b>Series:</b> Fallen, Book 1<br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 9/3/10<br />
<b>Published:</b> December 8, 2009<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Delacorte Press<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 452<br />
<b>Genre:</b> YA- Fantasy, Fallen Angels<br />
<b><a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/teens/fallen/index.html">Official Book Site</a></b><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiODfLxc7DRYgxBPmnUuCoEVK2G89S95GBDPb2hTCajtM2LlW7RmGMHJJKAgfelJ3S-90-IiNRXOV9IasM9TSoCe2kQTckjMdJnCWZ7JNfDkINqaK0GLMMDrOHoJ7tZvkjp4pgrZP6hemSN/s1600/Fallen-prison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiODfLxc7DRYgxBPmnUuCoEVK2G89S95GBDPb2hTCajtM2LlW7RmGMHJJKAgfelJ3S-90-IiNRXOV9IasM9TSoCe2kQTckjMdJnCWZ7JNfDkINqaK0GLMMDrOHoJ7tZvkjp4pgrZP6hemSN/s200/Fallen-prison.jpg" width="142" /></a>Angels and their fallen brethren have been the subject of many stories- some biblical and some not- since the written word. Some of the legends that get passed on through the Bible have actually inspired authors to write their own stories such as Lauren Kate. Though she knew very little about angel mythology going into the story, the author first got the idea for <i>Fallen</i> when she was a grad student auditing a class that was about "reading the Bible as a narrative text" which is when she came across a passage in the Book of Genesis about "a group of angels who were kicked out of heaven because they lusted after mortal women." As a writer of love stories, Ms. Kate said that she "started thinking about what it would be like to be normal girl—suddenly the object of an angel’s affection. What kinds of thrills and challenges would spring from such an unusual match? And what would her very over-protective parents think? When my mind started spinning around this mortal girl’s character, I had the feeling her love story had the power to be bigger, weightier, and with a lot more at stake than any romance—or really any thing—I’d ever written before." <i>Fallen</i> is the first of what will be a four book series.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-pIQzybPZtPgWckavgjI3jAu9HMZeJ0qOiTgWAe-QlHz25kQ-nTncM2nsMCSb_eZvGyLcEKKavObCusL3AE2qlWOpjqxs073S9JXD1ONMaftABSSCsNaBjciOuCRDFmgOZ7WS7t56yk_/s1600/Fallen-angel+statue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-pIQzybPZtPgWckavgjI3jAu9HMZeJ0qOiTgWAe-QlHz25kQ-nTncM2nsMCSb_eZvGyLcEKKavObCusL3AE2qlWOpjqxs073S9JXD1ONMaftABSSCsNaBjciOuCRDFmgOZ7WS7t56yk_/s200/Fallen-angel+statue.jpg" width="200" /></a>Well, I will say this, my first foray into this fallen angel genre that’s cropping up in YA lately was certainly fruitful even though it irritated me to no end that I was left with the feeling of “what’s going on?!” which prevailed through most of the book. Even though the story is written in third person, it’s mainly told through the main character Luce’s perspective and she didn’t seem to have a clue either. I did get the fact that it’s main theme is kind of reincarnation early on and I understood from buzz I had heard that it was about angels some how, but to be honest, I wanted to read this book because of the beautiful cover (I love <a href="http://www.google.com/images?q=Fernanda+Brussi&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=IeiwTO-3BIW8lQeyzpGqDQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQsAQwAA&biw=1366&bih=643">Fernanda Brussi</a>). The fact that it’s set in Savannah, Georgia which is one of my favorite places in the whole world was just more incentive so I was very disappointed that Ms. Kate didn’t take advantage of her setting (hopefully she will in future books?). I’ve never traveled to the part of Savannah described in the book and I still don’t understand what the hell was going on with this story. That’s not to say I didn’t like it because I actually loved it (even with the slight <i><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/03/twilight-saga.html">Twilight</a></i> undertones I detected, which <i>Fallen</i> is being compared to by several reviewers). I was just incredibly confused…<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswql-Z9AhtmFYQ9vNxhM2TI6mqug-iYPsjklZVUQ2UvmtzDAgjWttV1Yyy_VYhS1T-q4WMFUhYP7331XbF1Sq37tyhvYrkd8knfFzoF5fSMgtWsczH5TeVHkbDMBeqcpr_vZ5gT9dJCjH/s1600/Fallen-reds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswql-Z9AhtmFYQ9vNxhM2TI6mqug-iYPsjklZVUQ2UvmtzDAgjWttV1Yyy_VYhS1T-q4WMFUhYP7331XbF1Sq37tyhvYrkd8knfFzoF5fSMgtWsczH5TeVHkbDMBeqcpr_vZ5gT9dJCjH/s200/Fallen-reds.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
The characters in <i>Fallen</i> are what had me hooked more than anything however, the I felt like the story moves around Luce as she doesn’t seem wholly a part of it. I remember more about her hair than her actually. Maybe it’s a case of all the other characters being so vivid she just pales in comparison? I really liked Arriane and Penn. Both very different characters but each has their own brand of spunkiness. They are what lightens the heavy atmosphere of some of the book. I'll be the first to admit that I like a bad boy and brooding passive aggressiveness doesn't really appeal to me so Daniel and I didn't get along at first. I really wanted to like him but even with their supposed bond I would have thought Cam would be the guy for Luce until a bit later in the book. I actually preferred him over Daniel until about the last maybe 50 pages of the book... or at least the bar scene anyway. So, does he want her dead or what? I am <i>SO</i> confused. Another thing, I thought Cam liked Luce?<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDoqQcsZFRWTpkdKtN10th0gIF75gmfFfEldzcJWXLmLIUOatda1CbDPbmb8D_qUiNOv2xxuZEFf7rhyphenhyphenGNuL7stpAwgB_nV2RVtyt_UidL0CcQBaG3Ih0D1b-zzEN4mHVYDZKMRSgTC6Yk/s1600/Fallen-fallen-angels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDoqQcsZFRWTpkdKtN10th0gIF75gmfFfEldzcJWXLmLIUOatda1CbDPbmb8D_qUiNOv2xxuZEFf7rhyphenhyphenGNuL7stpAwgB_nV2RVtyt_UidL0CcQBaG3Ih0D1b-zzEN4mHVYDZKMRSgTC6Yk/s200/Fallen-fallen-angels.jpg" width="158" /></a>Surprisingly, Luce's story doesn't really hinge on any religion in particular nor does <i>Fallen</i> have a religious tone at all. When it boils down to it, everything is about the battle between good and evil with a forbidden love story woven throughout the rest of it. Disney has already optioned the film rights shortly before the book actually came out which is probably what helped get this so heavily marketed the way it was (there was even shirtless guys walking around in New York in winter with only wings on). That and it was awarded as the Book of the Year by the Random House sales team.<br />
<br />
"What was only glimpsed in <i>Fallen</i> about Daniel and Luce’s long history of love will be vastly expanded on in [the sequel] <i>Torment</i>, and even more so in<i> Passion</i> (the prequel [the author is] about to start working on). Very soon, readers will be able to see what makes their love so pure and so special, how and it’s grown and changed over time, and why it’s so essential that their love endure." I badly want to know what happens in the next book but I had a problem with this book because I had much more questions than answers in the end so it may take me awhile to get around to getting <i>Torment</i>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><b>"Some things are more important than love. You won't understand but you have to trust me."</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>No one knew the murky shapes she sometimes saw in the darkness. They'd always come to her. They'd come and gone for so long that Luce couldn't even remember the first time she'd seen them. But she could remember the first time she realized that she shadows didn't come for everyone-- or actually </b><i><b>anyone</b></i><b> but her. When she was seven, her family had been on vacation in Hilton Head and her parents had taken her on a boat trip. It was just about sunset when the shadows started rolling in over the water, and she'd turned to her father and said, "What do you do when they come, Dad? Why aren't you afraid of the monsters?"</b><br />
<b>There were no monsters, her parents assured her, but Luce's repeated insistence on the presence of </b><i><b>something </b></i><b>wobbly and dark had gotten her several appointments with the family eye doctor, and then glasses, and then appointments with the ear doctor after she made the mistake of describing the hoarse whooshing noise that the shadows sometimes made-- and then therapy, and then more therapy, and finally the prescription for anti-psychotic medication.</b><br />
<b>But nothing ever made them go away.</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>"That said, I don't know what you were expecting in terms of mushy-gushy friendship here at Sword & Cross. But let me be the first to tell you, it ain't that easy. People are here because they've got baggage. I'm talking curbside-check-in, pay-the-fine-'cause-it's-over-fifty-pounds kind of baggage. Get it?</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>And Luce brought up the rear, considering what might happen if she were to give her parents her own personal tour of the cemetery.</b><br />
<i><b>Here's where I served my first detention...</b></i><br />
<i><b>And here's where a falling marble angel nearly decapitated me...</b></i><br />
<i><b>And here's where a reform school boy you'd never approve of took me on the strangest picnic of my life.</b></i><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>No. This was </b><i><b>precisely</b></i><b> the circular argument she did not want to engage in. Luce didn't want to play any games. She just wanted to be with him. Only, she had no idea why. Or how to go about it. Or really, what being with him would mean. All she knew was that, despite everything, he was the one she thought about. The one she cared about.</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>She didn't understand what was happening. At all. And she didn't like it at all that everyone else did.</b></blockquote><br />
<u>Fallen Series</u><br />
1. Fallen (2009)<br />
2. Torment (2010)<br />
3. Passion (2011)<br />
4. Untitled<br />
<br />
<b>First Paragraph</b>: Around midnight, her eyes at last took shape. The look in them was feline, half determined and half tentative-- all trouble. Yes, they were just right, those eyes. Rising up to her fine, elegant brow, inches from the dark cascade of her hair.<br />
<br />
<i>Find Lauren Kate Online</i><br />
<a href="http://www.fallenlaurenkate.com/">Lauren Kate.com</a><br />
<a href="http://laurenkatebooks.net/">Lauren Kate.net</a> (official Site)<br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/laurenkatebooks">Twitter</a><br />
<a href="http://laurenkatebooks.net/category/blog">Blog</a><br />
<br />
<b>Links:</b><br />
<a href="http://www.fallenbooks.com.au/">Official Australian Fallen site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.fallenbooks.co.uk/">Official UK Fallen site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.fallenfixation.com/">Fallen Fixation</a> (fan blog)<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauren_Kate">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://beatrice.com/wordpress/2010/01/11/lauren-kate-guest-author/">Beatrice.com Guest Blog</a> on Selective Reading<br />
<a href="http://throughaglass.net/archives/2010/01/12/guest-post-by-lauren-kate-author-of-fallen/">Through a Glass Darkly Guest Blog</a> on Her Joy of Cooking vs. Writing<br />
<a href="http://www.thechildrensbookreview.org/weblog/2010/01/lauren-kate-why-angels-author-of-bestelling-ya-book-fallen.html">The Children's Book Review Guest Blog</a> on Why Angels?<br />
<a href="http://thebookbutterfly.com/2010/01/blog-tour-guest-stop-with-lauren-kate.html">The Book Butterfly Guest Blog</a> on Bad Boys<br />
<a href="http://suvudu.com/2010/01/blog-tour-post-lauren-kate-author-of-fallen-on-characters.html">Suvudu Guest Blog</a> on Characters<br />
<a href="http://www.bookchickcity.com/2010/06/ya-10-guest-author-giveaway-with-lauren.html">Book Chick City Guest Blog</a> on Reading Dead Authors<br />
<br />
<b>Interviews:</b><br />
<a href="http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=17610">Bitten By Books</a><br />
<a href="http://undeathmatch.wordpress.com/2010/01/18/an-interview-with-lauren-kate/">Undeath Match</a><br />
<a href="http://narrativelyspeaking.blogspot.com/2010/07/interview-with-lauren-kate.html">Narratively Speaking</a>- spoiler questions!<br />
<a href="http://www.bookchickcity.com/2009/12/chat-contest-with-lauren-kate-author-of.html">Book Chick City</a><br />
<a href="http://www.fallenfixation.com/?p=669#more-669">Fallen Fixation Q&A</a><br />
<a href="http://thecrookedshelf.blogspot.com/2009/11/author-interview-and-giveaway-fallen-by.html">The Crooked Shelf</a><br />
<a href="http://www.fantasybookreview.co.uk/blog/2009/11/26/lauren-kate-interview-november-2009/">Fantasy Book Review</a><br />
<a href="http://onceuponabookcase.blogspot.com/2009/11/mini-interview-with-lauren-kate.html">Once Upon a Bookcase</a><br />
<a href="http://gooddaysacramento.com/?articleID=68223">Good Day Sacremento</a> (video)<br />
<br />
Source: My personal collection, hardcover<br />
<br />
<br />
Book Trailer:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vsLE6bNaIrk?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vsLE6bNaIrk?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
UK Book Trailer:<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/eqfy1IMFBZ0?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/eqfy1IMFBZ0?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Random House Q&A:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/CbJ8bFbjyLw?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/CbJ8bFbjyLw?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
The Fallen Are Among Us (promotional work):<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rO-0IkfE2qU?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rO-0IkfE2qU?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Comic Con Interviews:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/F3gOV7ioLMg?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/F3gOV7ioLMg?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Picture Explanations</span></i></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Prison:</span></b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">The Sword & Cross Academy looks like a prison, complete with barbed wire</span></span></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Angel Statue:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Daniel saves Luce from a falling angel statue in the graveyard.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Surveillance Camera:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> The students are constantly on camera, or the "reds" as they're called... well unless they've rigged them to not record.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Fighting Angels:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Angels fighting their fallen comrades.</span>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-66472453565666665732010-09-27T19:29:00.005-05:002011-02-13T23:12:32.210-06:00Poirot’s First Mystery<blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6T7YaATR_hxlac5YoWHgxSwYFBVmlL-T33tcz3d3wHvt3pVxqP3lc0cOLCv8ZZO0glfPAhTlTu8xQEDl1yNGqLXZYImEqoD4PwtmEjAV6fWVd8rFdeThmtE8xKfyly67fFCf4WprjAxZ4/s1600/poirot-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6T7YaATR_hxlac5YoWHgxSwYFBVmlL-T33tcz3d3wHvt3pVxqP3lc0cOLCv8ZZO0glfPAhTlTu8xQEDl1yNGqLXZYImEqoD4PwtmEjAV6fWVd8rFdeThmtE8xKfyly67fFCf4WprjAxZ4/s320/poirot-main.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><i>Styles Court, a sprawling English estate, should have been inherited by John Cavendish. But instead it is left to his stepmother Emily Cavendish who loses no time in marrying a young fortune hunter… and soon meets her death.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>Dapper, brilliant Monsieur Hercule Poirot is fascinated by the mysterious affair and steps out of retirement to unravel the threads of intrigue and snare a most ingenious murderer. And thus is launched the most legendary career in mystery fiction.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title: </b>The Mysterious Affair at Styles<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.agathachristie.com/">Agatha Christie</a><br />
<b>Series:</b> Hercule Poirot, Book 1<br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 9/2/10- 9/3/10<br />
<b>Published:</b> October 1920<br />
<b>Publisher</b>: John Lane<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 296<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Mystery<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RjUauYoK4-7ronNyg-F6RSNutA7CNw1tmeDwp5hau8vvIEaJJIFA5dqOL1UIIpnmPXhCnEuuRWxUWafD1yxRx91JuUy7NHKqtGYK9KdCZaguALdG2CAWLo6WLaUkzbKtCpu3xECkJDpI/s1600/Poirot-styles+house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RjUauYoK4-7ronNyg-F6RSNutA7CNw1tmeDwp5hau8vvIEaJJIFA5dqOL1UIIpnmPXhCnEuuRWxUWafD1yxRx91JuUy7NHKqtGYK9KdCZaguALdG2CAWLo6WLaUkzbKtCpu3xECkJDpI/s200/Poirot-styles+house.jpg" width="200" /></a>A manor house out in the middle of the country in an Agatha Christie novel… must be murder afoot! Matter of fact, <i>The Mysterious Affair at Styles</i> was Christie’s very first detective novel as well as the first of many books to feature her "dandyfied little man" Hercule Poirot who is a retired Belgian detective whom "a speck of dust would have caused him more pain than a bullet wound." An eccentric little man with a slightly Sherlock Holmes way of investigating, Poirot was Agatha Christie’s most famous detective. “Perhaps the most salient example of Agatha Christie’s ability to both synthesize elements from the existing tradition of detective fiction and forge something new and original is her creation of Hercule Poirot, the second most famous fictional detective, after Sherlock Holmes. Poirot appears in Christie’s first novel and goes on to star in almost everyone of her most celebrated and admired novels. Christie’s achievement as a detective novelist is closely intertwined with this one character.”<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjbtZoq1WbmlhsXKGTYX7HVPbOJ42UDPyuQAg_z2eqP5BOFalR-NQY7jLDv_jiMP_i0fRBkfro2DIaKETDAokItdbKQgMdpQffmgQfmhnVJXl3y2eQfqnd7Xcl8P3z07H8tXQ0OrmupqP7/s1600/poirot-floor+plan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjbtZoq1WbmlhsXKGTYX7HVPbOJ42UDPyuQAg_z2eqP5BOFalR-NQY7jLDv_jiMP_i0fRBkfro2DIaKETDAokItdbKQgMdpQffmgQfmhnVJXl3y2eQfqnd7Xcl8P3z07H8tXQ0OrmupqP7/s320/poirot-floor+plan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>There are several suspects in this story such as Alfred Inglethorp, the recent husband of the deceased who is much younger than she whom nobody likes, John Cavendish, who is the eldest of the two brothers that are the deceased stepsons. He’s a retired lawyer who along with his wife Mary are living at Styles with his stepmother because she holds the purse strings and he is low on funds. Mary herself is estranged from her husband and spends most of her time in the company of a Dr. Baurenstein who is a bit of an expert on poison. The younger brother Lawrence who studied to be a doctor but gave up medicine to pursue a literary career. He’s also low on funds as well. There’s also Evelyn Howard (or ‘Evie’), Mrs. Inglethorp’s companion who soon has a row with the grand dame and leaves a few days before she is murdered. Cynthia Murdoch is also on hand and she works in a dispensary too which has access to poison. She was Mrs. Inglethorp’s ward since Cynthia was an orphan whose father was friends with the grand dame, she took her in. Oh and the narrator is a Lieutenant (later Captain) Hastings but we know he’s not the murderer since he’s helping Poirot. <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYay_QrDrWhhqZqnRfIDDheiCTQv3VNlGwQyX5koUHA-HiVp0pCQjxHUmGuqaGqSfHU39-tFyd-EfGNtdNs-voFiP5l_4pkFIftkyxEH3ovkEEsfDTHjDArVc9713CPmokSnYe3yYaC8qa/s1600/poirot-house+of+cars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYay_QrDrWhhqZqnRfIDDheiCTQv3VNlGwQyX5koUHA-HiVp0pCQjxHUmGuqaGqSfHU39-tFyd-EfGNtdNs-voFiP5l_4pkFIftkyxEH3ovkEEsfDTHjDArVc9713CPmokSnYe3yYaC8qa/s200/poirot-house+of+cars.jpg" width="133" /></a>However, I was pretty sure from the start of Cynthia’s innocence of the crime since she was so hard to wake up the night of the murder and I knew Mary Cavendish was guilty of something for the sole reason that she’s being forced to live with and depend upon her mother-in-law. Other than these two ladies and Hastings’ innocence of course, I didn’t have a clue! Agatha Christie said (and I have to concur), “Like all young writers, I was trying to put far too much plot into one book. I had too many false clues-- so many things to unravel that it might make the whole thing not only more difficult to solve, but more difficult to read.” However, it didn’t make the story no less enjoyable for me. What a remarkably clever woman Agatha Christie was! So far I’ve read three of her books and I haven’t once been able to figure out whodunit. I would never have thought of the guilty party in <i>The Mysterious Affair at Styles</i> and that just goes to show that every single word in a Christie book is important. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ2OTdI9dgJe1vGQV4IBmBVc_XjwIr7l2onZB7fGzoQBcinC5oVfzVaISeCzmDTkG462zdNc6meIwu66h-gdFg2Xn14F92iPS6L9UVuRw0KjJ4RsNv7gy4dBE5x_c3CeTnXGjXedd0Xydv/s1600/poirot-dispensary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="157" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ2OTdI9dgJe1vGQV4IBmBVc_XjwIr7l2onZB7fGzoQBcinC5oVfzVaISeCzmDTkG462zdNc6meIwu66h-gdFg2Xn14F92iPS6L9UVuRw0KjJ4RsNv7gy4dBE5x_c3CeTnXGjXedd0Xydv/s200/poirot-dispensary.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>“How about calling my little man Hercules? He would be a small man-- Hercules: a good name. His last name was more difficult. I don’t know why I settled on the name Poirot; whether it just came into my head or whether I saw it in some newspaper or written on something-- anyway it came. It went well not with Hercules but with Hercule-- Hercule Poirot.” Hercule Poirot is such a great character even if Ms. Christie was said to have really hated him after a couple of years of writing him, I thought he was very intelligent but hid that behind his funny little ways. The first time I read a story with him in it was Murder on the Orient Express (which was the ninth Poirot novel) and I actually thought he was annoying! I don’t know why I disliked him then but just thought of him as eccentric now but perhaps it’s because the author hadn’t started disliking him yet?<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk2P0n6A8-di59ntzs7KKCw5YFInQbwdKyWvWCn4efKNsW23lYxhQTHFDeA3ubzHZSBJ2cTl_3F3QwGrmfaXskKhG_0No4xkLTyFZjSHE-4GRZFeEBJ_yi0f5kewr-Cb_d01SXaSfjOCF3/s1600/poirot-hastings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk2P0n6A8-di59ntzs7KKCw5YFInQbwdKyWvWCn4efKNsW23lYxhQTHFDeA3ubzHZSBJ2cTl_3F3QwGrmfaXskKhG_0No4xkLTyFZjSHE-4GRZFeEBJ_yi0f5kewr-Cb_d01SXaSfjOCF3/s200/poirot-hastings.jpg" width="200" /></a>Though this was her first novel and her first murder by poisoning (certainly not her last!) it’s no less masterfully written than her later books. The author was working at a dispensary (just like her character Cynthia in this book) which is a kind of pharmacy, when she decided to write this so a lot of her knowledge of poisons go into her stories. Besides poisons, Christie didn’t know much about solving crime other than what she had read in other detective fiction but since she’s one of the most famous detective writers even several decades after her death, I have to say she did a terrific job. Her publisher John Lane certainly recognized her genius (though it took her a long time to get published) when he said he’d publish <i>The Mysterious Affair at Styles</i> if she would change a few things in the book (like a major overhaul of the ending) and sign what the author would later discover to be a really bad contract that caused her to not earn very much at all with this and her next five books though they all did extremely well.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9yckihmR2VOQE0Geg6fKqhT3hZoZGy3u4vyrqPXwZWPfSdLJBSFPX8f4WpG1abncMED9NidGYi3gc_7nMoatB9uIgWBesznPKSEI2zHmP7-wxX54QjRTj6BOOrXFhN3UkpVrtsnEphs98/s1600/Poirot-Mrs.+Ingethorps+letter.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9yckihmR2VOQE0Geg6fKqhT3hZoZGy3u4vyrqPXwZWPfSdLJBSFPX8f4WpG1abncMED9NidGYi3gc_7nMoatB9uIgWBesznPKSEI2zHmP7-wxX54QjRTj6BOOrXFhN3UkpVrtsnEphs98/s200/Poirot-Mrs.+Ingethorps+letter.jpeg" width="172" /></a></div>About her first novel the author said in her autobiography, “And so it was that I started on my long career; not that I suspected at the time that it was going to be a long career. In spite of the clause about the next five novels [in the contract with John Lane], this was to me a single and isolated experiment. I had been dared to write a detective story; I had written a detective story; it had been accepted, and was going to appear in print. There, as far as I was concerned, the matter ended. Certainly at that moment I did not envisage writing any more books. I think if I had been asked, I would have said that I would probably write stories from time to time.” Well considering she published 80 novels in her lifetime, several short stories, and even an autobiography I would have to say she was selling herself short. Almost every book Agatha Christie has written has been adapted for either film, TV, radio, or as a play and <i>The Mysterious Affair at Styles</i> is no different. It was adapted in 1990 for TV by London Weekend Television in Britain with <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKz8-jwj50U">David Suchet</a> as Hercule Poirot.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><b>Occasionally she referred to her husband over a question of days or dates. His watchful and attentive manner never varied. From the very first I took a firm and rooted dislike of him, and I flatter myself that my first judgments are usually fairly shrewd.</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>For the first time I felt that, with Evelyn Howard, something indefinable had gone from the atmosphere. Her presence had spelt security. Now that security was removed- and the air seemed rife with suspicion. The sinister face of Dr. Bauerstein recurred to me unpleasantly. A vague suspicion of every one and everything filled my mind. Just for a moment I had a premonition of approaching evil.</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>Poirot was an extraordinary looking little man. He was hardly more than five feet, four inches, but carried himself with great dignity. His head was exactly the shape of an egg, and he always perched it a little on one side. His moustache was very stiff and military. The neatness of his attire was almost incredible. I believe a speck of dust would have caused him more pain than a bullet wound. Yet this quaint dandyfied little man who, I was sorry to see, now limped badly, had been in his time one of the most celebrated members of the Belgian police. As a detective, his <i>flair</i> had been extraordinary, and he had achieved triumphs by unraveling some of the most baffling cases of the day.</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>I pass over Alfred Inglethorp, who acted the bereaved widower in a manner that felt to be disgusting in its hypocrisy. Did he know that we suspected him, I wondered. Surely he could not be unaware of the fact, conceal it as we would. Did he feel some secret stirring of fear, or was he confident that his crime would go unpunished? Surely the suspicion in the atmosphere must warn him that he was already a marked man.</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>“It is well. The bad moment has passed. Now all is arranged and classified. One must never permit confusion. The case is not clear yet—no. For it is of the most complicated! It puzzles <i>me</i>. <i>Me</i>, Hercule Poirot!</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>“Is he quite mad, Mr. Hastings?”</b><br />
<b>“I honestly don’t know. Sometimes, I feel sure he is mad as a hatter; and then, just as he is at his maddest, I find there is method to his madness.”</b></blockquote><br />
<b><u>Hercule Poirot Series</u></b><br />
1. The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1920)<br />
2. The Murder on the Links (1923)<br />
3. Poirot Investigates (1924)<br />
4. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926)<br />
5. The Big Four (1927)<br />
6. The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928)<br />
7. Peril at End House (1932)<br />
8. Lord Edgware Dies (1933) aka Thirteen at Dinner<br />
9. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/08/who-how-why.html">Murder on the Orient Express</a> (1934) aka Murder in the Calais Coach<br />
10. Three Act Tragedy (1934) aka Murder in Three Acts<br />
11. Death in the Clouds (1935) aka Death in the Air<br />
12. The ABC Murders (1936)<br />
13. Cards on the Table (1936)<br />
14. Murder in Mesopotamia (1936)<br />
15. Death on the Nile (1937)<br />
16. Dumb Witness (1937) aka Poirot Loses a Client<br />
17. Murder in the Mews (1937) aka Dead Man's Mirror<br />
18. Appointment with Death (1938)<br />
19. Hercule Poirot's Christmas (1938) aka A Holiday for Murder / Murder for Christmas<br />
20. Sad Cypress (1940)<br />
22. One, Two, Buckle My Shoe (1940) aka An Overdose of Death / The Patriotic Murders<br />
23. Evil Under the Sun (1941)<br />
24. Five Little Pigs (1942) aka Murder in Retrospect<br />
25. The Hollow (1946) aka Murder after Hours<br />
26. The Labours of Hercules (1947)<br />
27. Taken at the Flood (1948) aka There Is a Tide<br />
28. Mrs McGinty's Dead (1952) aka Blood Will Tell<br />
30. After the Funeral (1953) aka Funerals Are Fatal<br />
31. Hickory Dickory Dock (1955)<br />
32. Dead Man's Folly (1956)<br />
33. Cat Among the Pigeons (1959)<br />
34. The Clocks (1963)<br />
35. Third Girl (1966)<br />
36. Hallowe'en Party (1969)<br />
37. Elephants Can Remember (1972)<br />
38. Poirot's Early Cases (1974) aka Hercule Poirot's Early Cases<br />
39. Curtain: Poirot's Last Case (1975)<br />
<br />
<b>First Paragraph</b>: The intense interest aroused in the public by what was known at the time as "The Styles Case" has now somewhat subsided. Nevertheless, in view of the worldwide notoriety which attended it, I have been asked, both by my friend Poirot and the family themselves, to write an account of the whole story. This, we trust, will effectually silence the sensational rumours which still persist.<br />
<br />
<b>Links:</b><br />
<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/863">Complete Book Online</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mysterious_Affair_at_Styles">Book Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agatha_Christie">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hercule_Poirot">Poirot Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.poirot.us/">Hercule Poirot Site</a><br />
<br />
Source: Library Loan, large print hardcover<br />
<br />
<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Picture Explanations</span></i></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Styles Manor:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> This could be the manor house</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Floor Plan:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> This is the sketch of the floor plan included in the book.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">House of cards: </span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Poirot is building this when Hasting remarks upon something that helps Poirot solve the crime.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Dispensary:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> This is what a dispensary looked like back in the 1930s. This is where Cynthia worked.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Hugh Fraiser:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> He plays Lieutenant Arthur Hastings in the TV adaptation of this book.</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Letter:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> This is the letter to Ms. Hastings from Mrs. Inglethorp</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span><br />
<u>Related Reviews</u><br />
<u></u><br />
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1378829536">Murder On the Orient Express by Agatha Christie</a><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/08/who-how-why.html">Murder On the Orient Express</a> (1974)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/09/bewildering-mystery.html">And Then There Were None</a> by Agatha Christie<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/10/ultimate-whodunit-mystery.html">Ten Little Indians</a> (1965)Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-12508853105483225712010-09-23T11:35:00.002-05:002011-02-13T23:14:41.044-06:00A Whole New World to Police<blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwNCurCzBiFR5ksLSl1S8RCVyqJVQnfY5pJixY8p4uo5BwtUwWMvyEAfw0N59PwmNf5uqygDgmMBvnAXcGLe8TFdoKB9mDetycg_J0esfPf1cE0AyMQCR8RV2RpJdMbmOM057vdXJozKO8/s1600/Better-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwNCurCzBiFR5ksLSl1S8RCVyqJVQnfY5pJixY8p4uo5BwtUwWMvyEAfw0N59PwmNf5uqygDgmMBvnAXcGLe8TFdoKB9mDetycg_J0esfPf1cE0AyMQCR8RV2RpJdMbmOM057vdXJozKO8/s320/Better-main.jpg" width="199" /></a></div><i>Atlanta: it’s the promised city for the off-worlders, foreigners from the alternate dimensions of heaven-like Elysia and hell-like Charbydon. Some bring good works and miracles. And some bring unimaginable evil…</i><br />
<br />
<i>Charlie Madigan is a divorced mother of one, and a kick-ass cop trained to take down the toughest human and off-world criminals. She’s recently returned from the dead after a brutal attack, an unexplained revival that has left her plagued by ruthless nightmares and random outbursts of strength that make her job for Atlanta P.D.’s Integration Task Force even harder. Since the Revelation, the criminal element in Underground Atlanta has grown, leaving Charlie and her partner Hank to keep the chaos to a dull roar. But now an insidious new danger is descending on her city with terrifying speed, threatening innocent lives: a deadly, off-world narcotic known as ash. Charlie is determined to uncover the source of ash before it targets another victim- but can she protect those she loves from a force more powerful than heaven and hell combined?</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> The Better Part of Darkness<br />
<b>Author</b>: <a href="http://www.kellygay.com/">Kelly Gay</a><br />
<b>Series:</b> Charlie Madigan, Book 1<br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 8/31/10<br />
<b>Published</b>: November 24, 2009<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Pocket Books<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 391<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Urban Fantasy/ Sci-Fi<br />
<br />
Kelly Gay has written other books (and screenplays) before and though they went unpublished they were nominated for several awards. However,<i> The Better Part of Darkness</i> was her debut novel and it was sold to Pocket Books publishing in June of 2008. They've only signed for the first two books in the series so far (the second one that just came out a few weeks ago). This book was an "Okra" pick for the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance (SIBA) and finaled in two categories for the RITA's too.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizNO1wSwS6BVGPGXwQDPq2oK0ewBszJBZG_KmWDSdBpqfRtWwR-WZy-toZGvimjP8Ag3F0zsBjh_q5v14SjDGfRP2CtHzKwMe0yHofjLrUTI0Gr13yMQv1c7tacTdAXvGQuvWNBMR-Ke19/s1600/better-atlanta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizNO1wSwS6BVGPGXwQDPq2oK0ewBszJBZG_KmWDSdBpqfRtWwR-WZy-toZGvimjP8Ag3F0zsBjh_q5v14SjDGfRP2CtHzKwMe0yHofjLrUTI0Gr13yMQv1c7tacTdAXvGQuvWNBMR-Ke19/s200/better-atlanta.jpg" width="200" /></a>"What if our myths and traditions of heaven and hell were based on some obscure truth? What if the beings in them were nothing like we had imagined? And what if this woman, Charlie, works on the front lines, dealing with the integration of our societies, and suddenly she’s forced to make a terrible choice when it comes to her child?" These are the questions Kelly Gay asked herself and this book is what was the answer. Mythology is what first motivated the author to write and it still inspires her even now. Which shows so much during <i>The Better Part of Darkness</i> in which the Elysian and Charybdon (pronounced Eh-LEE-see-ah and Char-bih-don) characters are creatures out of our myths. For example, Charlie's partner on the ITF police force Hank is a siren... a male siren! How cool is that? So, don't expect vampires and werewolves in this urban fantasy (there aren't any), but keep an eye out for quite a few other mythological beings!<br />
<br />
Even though the beings in the book are found in human's myths about heaven and hell, The Better Part of Darkness actually has nothing whatsoever to do with religion. I don't think religious preferences are ever mentioned by anyone except to say that none of the off-worlders know anything about human's version of God either. Which makes me wonder about the off-worlder's religions actually. Ms. Gay says, "Elysia is a take on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elysian_Fields">Elysian Fields</a>, the final resting place for heroes and the virtuous in Greek mythology. And Charbydon is a combination of Greek myth words: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charybdis">Charybdis</a>, the sea monster and daughter of Poseidon and/or whirlpool depending on which myths you read, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charon_(mythology)">Charon</a>, the being who ferried souls across the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Styx">River Styx</a> to the side of the underworld."<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_NDxQFUEmh_Qv7frDXvevUK4dRb3jTBDfYJ2Cmmd2FioCHRnlKj0ImLal8tV7N4XbuZkXhWjEEY4fs6WN6zSb_gDW_frBBLhJN9_o7rUl6Oe7hxWQoEup_UBncNkTYVxB_UGT90OwBAy/s1600/better-bath+house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_NDxQFUEmh_Qv7frDXvevUK4dRb3jTBDfYJ2Cmmd2FioCHRnlKj0ImLal8tV7N4XbuZkXhWjEEY4fs6WN6zSb_gDW_frBBLhJN9_o7rUl6Oe7hxWQoEup_UBncNkTYVxB_UGT90OwBAy/s200/better-bath+house.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
The author said, "I think I've always wanted to explore the possibilities of real supernatural creatures being the basis for many of our myths. The main idea for the story, however, came with Charlie and wanting to write about a single mom, to put her in a position where she has to make a choice between her work and her city, and protecting those she loves. I kept thinking of the fierce nature of a mother protecting her young, and how cool this would be in an urban fantasy setting/world. It all kind of fell into place after that." I found it remarkable that the main character was a divorced, single mother as that’s not too common in urban fantasy that I've seen lately. Normally I have a problem with that but being a mother was just part of who Charlie was. It didn't hurt that her kid Emma was a sweetheart and not really all that young either. This is a dark and gritty urban fantasy and Charlie could have run the risk of being just as dark and gritty as her world but I think her kid helped keep her grounded. What surprised me about this divorced mom is that her ex-husband Will is actually not a bad guy, he just got mixed up in some bad things and did some dumb stuff. Really, I was all set up to hate him but he's truly not a bad guy though he did do another stupid thing and it kind of takes him out of the last half of the book which I'm really curious about how the author is going to handle in the sequel. I also really like Rex so that's certainly a conundrum!<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg64tuvDIF0WG_4n0HHjp3O6Y-S_gj-eobZgP4wz-3SGrp-BWTvMRpBteQpNDkv3z3jIBSjEmsJWe6A-9yMQh8EmFx0Q5epziY9xaVmgnGL00JqOGbPVK-aj4Qoa8D36L_lDP-6C8E-lALe/s1600/better-hospital.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg64tuvDIF0WG_4n0HHjp3O6Y-S_gj-eobZgP4wz-3SGrp-BWTvMRpBteQpNDkv3z3jIBSjEmsJWe6A-9yMQh8EmFx0Q5epziY9xaVmgnGL00JqOGbPVK-aj4Qoa8D36L_lDP-6C8E-lALe/s200/better-hospital.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<i>The Better Part of Darkness</i> is an incredibly neat book even though it pushed me about as far as I'm willing to go when it comes to sci-fi. It was actually urban fantasy though and set in Atlanta, Georgia.... well, in an alternate version of the city. I haven't seen such original world building in urban fantasy for years (and I‘ve seen some great world building in urban fantasy), you truly believe in this world because it's so grounded so Kelly Gay really hit this one out of the park. My only complaint is that though it's set in an alternate Atlanta, it could have been set in any major city since it doesn't mention any place specifically... though the area around Charlie's sister Bryn's store Hodgepodge sounds a bit like Little Five Points to me. The drug in the book was originally called After Glow which actually makes so much more sense than <i>ash</i> which it ended up being called.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIgcjKlNs0WoWbDQiPuqXlAbG5MCEdd0VY3Z9rLHSCD-IfG5M5r7VZVE4iw4OmG7ft4HJeIE3mIzuxfrbnm3KzhDnNXPAUChwl3mEGKH1Zzh32he_1VddhmHpbWVyvq7-VfOQRTuV1HPCk/s1600/better-atlanta2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIgcjKlNs0WoWbDQiPuqXlAbG5MCEdd0VY3Z9rLHSCD-IfG5M5r7VZVE4iw4OmG7ft4HJeIE3mIzuxfrbnm3KzhDnNXPAUChwl3mEGKH1Zzh32he_1VddhmHpbWVyvq7-VfOQRTuV1HPCk/s200/better-atlanta2.jpg" width="200" /></a>The world building may be awesome but it's the characters that really are what make this story so good. I mean everyone from main to extremely minor characters are very real, colorful, and you want to know more about them. I have never been so strongly reminded of an actress before when reading a book but something about Charlie reminds me of Eliza Dushku who played Faith on Buffy. Partly because of her description but I was influenced a good bit by the cover model as well by Chris McGrath (same cover artist as Jim Butcher's Dresden Files and Kat Richardson's <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/08/between-worlds.html">Greywalker</a> series). The author offered up actress Stana Katic and she too is somewhat reminiscent of the character as well. I loved that though Charlie is essentially a cop and can be hard as nails, she's not afraid of being a girl (and a mother to boot) either. I always enjoy when an author doesn't make her character sacrifice one for the other and somehow combines both. I do hope the author does write other books in this series with other characters instead of Charlie & Co. as the main ones someday. There are four books planned in this series but Kelly says she wants to do more, especially some stand-alone novels featuring characters besides Charlie. I would love to see one about Hank!<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUW5K4XPEJJtN4nAqvZqnaAymRK-d0dlWocliPq7vYXbcq1ld2pGugvFsuE3_Wmh8qFsf-pV4K5SYoWBhe0ob5JBINXbmnq9H7FjmKqnlGxsCeb8KvhHi0QHDX3D8X8Z4II5t296z2bXZ/s1600/Better-bryns+shop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUW5K4XPEJJtN4nAqvZqnaAymRK-d0dlWocliPq7vYXbcq1ld2pGugvFsuE3_Wmh8qFsf-pV4K5SYoWBhe0ob5JBINXbmnq9H7FjmKqnlGxsCeb8KvhHi0QHDX3D8X8Z4II5t296z2bXZ/s200/Better-bryns+shop.jpg" width="200" /></a>"It's about choices and sacrifice. I wanted to explore what lengths a person would go to, what they'd sacrifice for those they loved. I think most people are certain in their answer, but when faced with it head on...well, it might be an entirely different story. And when it's an entirely different world, things can get even more complicated. I hope readers will find the story unique and fresh, with things they haven't seen before, but with all the human emotions and motivations they recognize and relate to." I can honestly say that Kelly Gay accomplished everything she set out to do with <i>The Better Part of Darkness</i> and I only hope the sequel <i>The Darkest Edge of Dawn</i> is just as good. Kelly Gay also writes under the name Kelly Keaton (for her grandmother) and her first book published under that name will be called <i>Darkness Becomes Her</i> which is a YA novel and will be released in 2011.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><b>Yeah. October tenth was my favorite freaking day of the year. The thirteenth anniversary. The day heaven and hell came out of the closet. Literally.</b><br />
<b>It wasn’t a day one tended to forget.</b><br />
<br />
<b>Our training and selection process had become legendary. Not many people could look a hellhound in the eye and know how to defeat it. We’d been trained to face every being and beast from both worlds, and we had the scars and the nightmares to prove it.</b><br />
<br />
<b>“Try being a single mother, who carries three lethal firearms and can take down a runner at fifty yards. Trust me, it doesn’t make a date feel all warm and fuzzy inside.”</b><br />
<br />
<b>Ask anyone and they can tell you where they were and what they were doing when the news broke. Scientists had discovered (some say “stumbled upon”) two parallel planes of existence, which, according to many leaders and believers of the world’s major religions, resembled certain aspects of heaven and hell.</b><br />
<b>They’d been visiting us for thousands of years, using our world as a battleground and neutral zone, interfering in our lives, speaking our languages, doing good works and miracles, committing horrible crimes. And now we knew the truth. Elysia and Charbydon, and the beings in them, weren’t the things of Sunday school lessons and Hallmark figurines.</b><br />
<br />
<b>“I’m fine, Hank.” <i>I just rolled out of a moving car in high heels</i>. “How are you?”</b><br />
<br />
<b>Seconds later, he moved back and whispered, “Hellhound.”</b><br />
<b>I looked at Rex, “You’re up.”</b><br />
<b>“I should be on Broadway right now,” he muttered. “Instead I’m here in the Blair Witch forest, about to get eaten by a hairless fucking dog on gigantic fucking steroids.”</b></blockquote><br />
<u>Charlie Madigan Series</u><br />
1. The Better Part of Darkness (2009)<br />
2. The Darkest Edge of Dawn (2010)<br />
<br />
<b>First Paragraph: </b>“You told a two-thousand-year-old oracle to <i>prove it</i>.” Hank kept pace beside me, nursing his bloody nose with a handful of fast-food napkins I’d pulled from the glove box earlier. “ I mean, do you ever think before the words spew out of your mouth, Charlie?”<br />
<br />
<i>Find Kelly Gay Online</i><br />
<a href="http://www.kellygay.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://kellygay.blogspot.com/">Blog</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelly-Gay/126055456697">Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/kellyhgay">Twitter</a><br />
<br />
<b>Links</b><br />
<a href="http://kellygay.blogspot.com/2009/05/my-cover.html">Original cover</a> on author's blog MAY 21, 2009. Slightly different from finished product.<br />
<a href="http://kellygay.blogspot.com/2009/11/2k-event-presents-evy-stone.html">The 2K Event</a> character Charlie interviews another character on author blog<br />
<a href="http://shywriters.blogspot.com/2009/11/facing-our-fearswhatever-they-are.html">Once Written, Twice Shy</a>- Guest Blog on Fears<br />
<a href="http://mamawriters.com/2009/11/special-guest-debut-author-kelly-gay/">Mama Writers</a>- Guest Blog on writing with kids<br />
<a href="http://www.deadlinedames.com/?p=2147">Deadline Dames</a>- Guest Blog on release day jitters<br />
<a href="http://www.tianevitt.com/2009/11/guest-post-upcoming-debut-author-kelly-gay/">Debuts & Reviews</a>- Guest Blog on Reviews<br />
<a href="http://www.literaryescapism.com/6532/guest-author-kelly-gay">Literary Escapisms</a>- Guest Blog on Religion in the book<br />
<a href="http://allthingsurbanfantasy.blogspot.com/2009/12/guest-blog-kelly-gay-as-charlie-madigan.html">All Things Urban Fantasy</a>- Guest Blog on Hank the siren<br />
<br />
<b>Interviews</b><br />
<a href="http://amberkatze.blogspot.com/2010/07/author-interview-with-kelly-gay.html">Amberkatze’s Book Blog</a><br />
<a href="http://romancewritersonthejourney.wordpress.com/2008/07/13/meet-author-kelly-gay/">Romance Writers on the Journey</a><br />
<a href="http://www.eclecticbooklover.com/2009/09/rookie-wednesday-kelly-gay-author-of.html">The Electic Book Lover</a><br />
<a href="http://darkfaerietales.com/author-interview-kelly-gay.html">Dark Faerie Tales</a><br />
<a href="http://hookedonromance.blogspot.com/2009/11/guest-blogger-kelly-gay.html">Hooked on Romance</a><br />
<a href="http://reluctantadults.blogspot.com/2009/11/author-interview-kelly-gay.html">Reluctant Adults</a><br />
<a href="http://numberonenovels.blogspot.com/2009/11/kelly-gay-better-part-of-darkness.html">Number One Novels</a><br />
<a href="http://chaostitan.blogspot.com/2009/11/character-interview-charlie-madigan.html">Organized Chaos Kelly Meding</a> character interview<br />
<a href="http://fantasydreamersramblings.blogspot.com/2009/11/interview-giveaway-author-kelly-gay.html">Fantasy Dreamer's Ramblings</a><br />
<a href="http://novelthoughts.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/debut-author-kelly-gay-answers-mads-questions/">Novel Thoughts</a><br />
<a href="http://www.scifiguy.ca/2009/12/guest-authors-kelly-gay-and-kelly.html">SciFi Guy</a><br />
<a href="http://jackiekessler.com/catandmuse/2009/12/09/charlie-says/">Jackie Kessler Cat and Muse</a> character interview<br />
<a href="http://urbanfantasyreader.blogspot.com/2009/12/author-interview-and-giveaway-kelly-gay.html">Sara's Urban Fantasy Blog</a><br />
<a href="http://susanadrian.blogspot.com/2009/12/interview-giveaway-with-author-kelly.html">Susan Adrian</a><br />
<br />
Source: Personal collection courtesy of <a href="http://bookwormygirl.blogspot.com/">All About {n} blog</a>, paperback<br />
<br />
<b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Picture Explanations</span></i></b><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Atlanta: </span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Takes place in an alternate version of the capital of my home state</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Bath House</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">: Where Hank goes to unwind because it reminds him of home and where they get some clues about the ash. Kind of resembles Roman baths</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Hospital:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Charlie dies before the beginning of the book but she also ends up back in the hospital during it</span><br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Bryn's Shop:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> I did ask the author and she said the area was inspired by Little Five Points</span>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-68793292581902051202010-09-20T09:41:00.002-05:002011-02-13T23:16:20.703-06:00For God's Sake, Get Out!<blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVCT2Hens-nurLu6MSvAN9usShJVRZmiuVueHBNmwaGvpr-CxJlBkhFSlfFF4t7ufWhQ6xNjxTZXTsJaJAyoTTsXq4WDKM1MQz6pClwVGtOMtlb-RdDiXPk14nuhwVcNbnJZSFOKBUQk5n/s1600/amityville-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVCT2Hens-nurLu6MSvAN9usShJVRZmiuVueHBNmwaGvpr-CxJlBkhFSlfFF4t7ufWhQ6xNjxTZXTsJaJAyoTTsXq4WDKM1MQz6pClwVGtOMtlb-RdDiXPk14nuhwVcNbnJZSFOKBUQk5n/s320/amityville-main.jpg" /></a></div><i>There's no place like home...for bloodcurdling horror! James Brolin, Margot Kidder and Academy Award® winner* Rod Steiger fall prey to the powers of darkness in this spine-tingling tale of a house possessed by unspeakable evil. One of the most talked-about haunted-house stories of all time, The Amityville Horror will hit you where you live.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>For George and Kathy Lutz, the colonial home on the river's edge seemed ideal: quaint, spacious and amazingly affordable. Of course, six brutal murders had taken place there just a year before, but houses don't have memories...or do they? Soon the Lutz dream house becomes a hellish nightmare, as walls begin to drip blood and satanic forces threaten to destroy them. Now the Lutzes must try to escape or forfeit their lives - and their souls!</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> The Amityville Horror<br />
<b>Release:</b> July 27, 1979<br />
<b>Genre</b>: Horror<br />
<b>MPAA Rating:</b> R<br />
<b>Based On:</b> The Amityville Horror: A True Story by Jay Anson<br />
<b>Writer:</b> Sandor Stern<br />
<b>Director</b>: Stuart Rosenberg<br />
<b>Music By</b>: Lalo Schifrin<br />
<b>Produced By:</b> Samuel Z. Arkoff, Elliot Geisinger, & Ronald Saland<br />
<b>Distributed By:</b> American International Pictures & MGM<br />
<b>Run Time:</b> 117 minutes<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidKmcH85HD3yQ46u-ytWs-m9qFigon0v-SmuMqszL0baaNs4QSARneXVyQ3xEW_M2JeBueHOs9f-5v_sc5CYBSqnqHSH79B0fvMERJO6PbOFHl9FRJQ4j2E-pOpVs3G17qxSP6YslaGPfJ/s1600/amityville-phone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="109" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidKmcH85HD3yQ46u-ytWs-m9qFigon0v-SmuMqszL0baaNs4QSARneXVyQ3xEW_M2JeBueHOs9f-5v_sc5CYBSqnqHSH79B0fvMERJO6PbOFHl9FRJQ4j2E-pOpVs3G17qxSP6YslaGPfJ/s200/amityville-phone.jpg" width="200" /></a>The only part of the story that is known for a fact is that before the Lutz family moved in, there was a brutal murder of an entire family committed by the eldest son (it’s been said that he had help though he never mentioned it) and that story can be found in dozens of books, some non-fiction and some not. A tragedy sure, but one that shouldn’t get all that much press before it was forgotten… except that the next owners George and Kathy Lutz and their children experienced something remarkable. Was it real or was it a hoax? That’s the question that has been asked ever since the Lutz family ran out of their new home after only living there for 28 days (less than that in the film) claiming that their home was possessed. Psychics, reporters, and especially ghost hunter types descended on the house en masse and the Lutz’s story was made into a bestselling book ) which in turn became the basis for the 1979 movie <i>The Amityville Horror</i>. George and Kathy Lutz both stood by their claims until their deaths. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6-k5I7-DDLXRbv8Ss-j4DbPsF43ytrvStnHn3VBuemQoHQYDARtsF9MZC8DbxGH5UTmMcXLV2amB_PeNjVtXAZ43G6tJgWhbU6caGgd0uiPlCkjoMASkJYYWQfhZSZeiftNfv4ulcfTun/s1600/amityville-priest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6-k5I7-DDLXRbv8Ss-j4DbPsF43ytrvStnHn3VBuemQoHQYDARtsF9MZC8DbxGH5UTmMcXLV2amB_PeNjVtXAZ43G6tJgWhbU6caGgd0uiPlCkjoMASkJYYWQfhZSZeiftNfv4ulcfTun/s200/amityville-priest.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
The problem I have with haunted house-type horror movies (and sometimes books), is that it’s rarely explained as to the why and how. <i>The Amityville Horror</i> is no exception though the filmmakers did throw in a very small scene about Indians and a sorcerer that had fled the Salem Witch Trials being inhabitants of that land at one time. What really bothered me more than anything else is that I never got the feeling that the house itself was a character and that’s what I always look for in a successful haunted house movie.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUocHxd4xP7Mn4jwOcEvjn0euntJmz1gfiaLCkyl2bGe1f15kIp4F7kIj57EXiTKVQaK05JzKJb6SB5u9yy46atVRKHYRGS5SVIT2uWHvQL-jVKyZ9XUr4GNETzcqE6M35Bodj8CiSr01/s1600/amityville-wood+chopping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUocHxd4xP7Mn4jwOcEvjn0euntJmz1gfiaLCkyl2bGe1f15kIp4F7kIj57EXiTKVQaK05JzKJb6SB5u9yy46atVRKHYRGS5SVIT2uWHvQL-jVKyZ9XUr4GNETzcqE6M35Bodj8CiSr01/s200/amityville-wood+chopping.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>However, I got pretty much what I expected out of the film, a little bad acting and a few bad special effects though they weren’t quite as badly done (by today’s standards) as I thought it would be. On the other hand, the only time I jumped during the entire film was when that black cat jumped up on the windowsill to hiss at George. I have to admit that I didn’t really enjoy the movie and had to force myself to finish it. I’m not really sure why because it’s not bad and it’s not even all that dated (when you don‘t count the purple pig) yet, Rod Steiger (the priest) and the dog Harry are probably the best actors in this film in my opinion.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqqLfQo9mD_xO7vS9V6NXitDsmcfrJJZtX2Y8LV6BKqE4TCYhjDepTqwkNEKWKS_uwHaxorBikg4cVqnXujd25H-W3nDgEwxePEgDeMamlhGXRizwmKIz5ljnujzLkJgX03yDs0F1H_fB/s1600/amityville-flies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqqLfQo9mD_xO7vS9V6NXitDsmcfrJJZtX2Y8LV6BKqE4TCYhjDepTqwkNEKWKS_uwHaxorBikg4cVqnXujd25H-W3nDgEwxePEgDeMamlhGXRizwmKIz5ljnujzLkJgX03yDs0F1H_fB/s200/amityville-flies.jpg" width="200" /></a>That’s not to say James Brolin and Margot Kidder (who play George and Kathy Lutz) are bad actors, there’s just some parts that they overacted, especially Brolin’s whole “I’m coming apart!”- number and when Kidder wakes up from a nightmare screaming, she sounds incredibly fake too. Another thing that bugged me, all the extra characters that didn’t really go anywhere. The police chief for example, besides stalking some characters for a little while, what purpose does he serve? Where did the psychic lady who is married to George’s co-worker go to after she discovered the red room?<br />
<br />
One thing I am happy to say is that I did want the characters to burn the house down and salt the earth at the end but other than flies, black goop, slamming doors and windows, and bleeding walls/ stairs how much was the house really responsible for? Was George always a nut with a penchant for firewood? In the film, George smacks Kathy and she just cries and runs upstairs. She should have packed up her kids and left! Let him stay in the psycho house if he wanted to!<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNstkxPsLj7EE40Nw7coxqzuKX4dNJAe0o7qxej0KrCtf-QdMs40BEYRZi3_ZOxDhYS5RrJtbz1-kHbw8UpO26hFzRf0Z6ndkYhEiJTE_ZB1Oo372J1CbRx00R3tD-QsVEQdkSa4SQQS87/s1600/amityville-kid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNstkxPsLj7EE40Nw7coxqzuKX4dNJAe0o7qxej0KrCtf-QdMs40BEYRZi3_ZOxDhYS5RrJtbz1-kHbw8UpO26hFzRf0Z6ndkYhEiJTE_ZB1Oo372J1CbRx00R3tD-QsVEQdkSa4SQQS87/s200/amityville-kid.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<i>The Amityville Horror</i> was nominated for an Oscar for Best Music/ Original Score, two Saturn Awards for Best Actress and Best Horror Film, and a Golden Globe also for Best Original Score but it didn't win any of them. I will say that the soundtrack is great though and one of the very best things about the film. A huge blockbuster when it was first released, the first film in the Amityville franchise just doesn’t work as well today. However, you can go make that decision for yourself.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEienzG6Sc9gJpA_DjnGRQXcMctNEeZu5lXvlapahU-zwf1XHPNi1BM4SP0vj_4VEG9qJFiyfQNSxnC9lwSy3xb9AOhWYozpxocvzdEsINK3c1F8H9gez4-ju2N9fMJOE9po_FKUH5Dm26eJ/s1600/Amityville-house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEienzG6Sc9gJpA_DjnGRQXcMctNEeZu5lXvlapahU-zwf1XHPNi1BM4SP0vj_4VEG9qJFiyfQNSxnC9lwSy3xb9AOhWYozpxocvzdEsINK3c1F8H9gez4-ju2N9fMJOE9po_FKUH5Dm26eJ/s200/Amityville-house.jpg" width="200" /></a>There have been several more films in this franchise including two theatrically released ones, five low budget, and one remake of the original in 2005 starring Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George. I know I had seen this film when I was younger but I really didn’t remember much about it and what I did remember was slightly tainted by the 2005 remake of the film (not that it was bad, I just remember that one better) which I did see. I did know that this was based on a "true story" (though, there are still many debates one the truthfulness of the real Lutz family) because I had read one of many books about it a long time ago and caught one of the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxi2k6i7r70">Histories Mysteries</a> episodes about it. Do I believe the Lutz’s story? No, not really because there have been people who have lived in that house since and as of May 2010 it’s for sale again yet the only problems that have been reported are the tourists.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quote</u></b></div><blockquote><b>Kathy Lutz: I just wish that... all those people hadn't died here. I mean... ugh! A guy kills his whole family. Doesn't that bother you? </b><br />
<b>George: Well, sure, but... houses don't have memories. </b></blockquote><br />
<u>The Amityville Horror Franchise</u><br />
1. The Amityville Horror (1979)<br />
2. Amityville II: The Possession (1982) <br />
3. Amityville 3-D (1983) <br />
4. Amityville: The Evil Escapes (1989) (TV) <br />
5. The Amityville Curse (1990) (V) <br />
6. Amityville 1992: It's About Time (1992) (V) <br />
7. Amityville: A New Generation (1993) (V) <br />
8. Amityville: Dollhouse (1996) (V) <br />
The Amityville Horror (2005) (remake)<br />
<br />
<i>Find The Amityville Horror Online</i><br />
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078767/">Imdb.com</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Amityville_Horror_(1979_film)">Wikipedia</a><br />
<br />
<b>Links</b><br />
<a href="http://www.amityvillehorror.com/">Official Amityville Horror Website</a> (not affiliated with movies)<br />
<a href="http://www.snopes.com/horrors/ghosts/amityville.asp">Snopes</a><br />
<a href="http://blog.moviefone.com/2010/07/22/movie-locations-house-from-amityville-horror-toms-river-new-jersey/">Directions</a> to and about one of the NJ movie location<br />
<br />
<b>Interview</b><br />
2006- <a href="http://www.ghostvillage.com/legends/2005/legends36_04122005.shtml">Last interview</a> before George Lutz’s death<br />
<br />
Trailer:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9fSqS0MrOZ0?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9fSqS0MrOZ0?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Documentary:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/u6BQzKNkXHg?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/u6BQzKNkXHg?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Good Morning America:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/P3g2gTWlwQ8?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/P3g2gTWlwQ8?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Merv Griffin Show:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/07XhxluF6Jo?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/07XhxluF6Jo?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
In Search of... The Amityville Horror:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/diKXTVMTXKU?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/diKXTVMTXKU?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-49209164529905372812010-09-17T17:02:00.004-05:002011-02-13T23:46:22.257-06:00HWA Presents an Anthology<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD2Vyrjk4gVrxDkYukJToU0Q61md3a4tBjRc_IKnKx7WEDsvUVmCQHvdPGwCBlK3Nr-0vT6wXuKa3skYfpwzpBnkwkUg2EmQ_MtYWf7rkUHzCceQ7f6VvdsCsVti2zU1CKaqjiIkwFsp7J/s1600/Blood-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD2Vyrjk4gVrxDkYukJToU0Q61md3a4tBjRc_IKnKx7WEDsvUVmCQHvdPGwCBlK3Nr-0vT6wXuKa3skYfpwzpBnkwkUg2EmQ_MtYWf7rkUHzCceQ7f6VvdsCsVti2zU1CKaqjiIkwFsp7J/s320/Blood-main.jpg" width="198" /></a></div><blockquote><i>Warning: This Anthology Contains Works of Fiction that are Gruesome, Disturbing, Horrifying, and Drop-Dead Hilarious!</i> </blockquote><blockquote><i>The Horror Writers Association Presents Blood Lite… a collection of entertaining tales that puts the fun back into dark fiction, with ironic twists and tongue-in-cheek wit to temper the jagged edge.</i> </blockquote><blockquote><i>Charlaine Harris reveals the dark side of going green, when a quartet of die-hard environmentalists host a fund-raiser with a gory twist in “An Evening with Al Gore”… In an all-new Dresden Files story from Jim Butcher, when it comes to tracking deadly paranormal doings, there’s no such thing as a “Day Off” for the Chicago P.D.’s wizard detective, Harry Dresden… Sherrilyn Kenyon turns a cubicle-dwelling MBA with no life into a demon-fighting seraph with one hell of an afterlife in “Where Angels Fear to Tread”… Celebrity necromancer Jaime Vegas is headlining a sold-out séance tour, but behind the scenes, a disgruntled ghost has a bone to pick in Kelley Armstrong’s “The Ungrateful Dead.”</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> Blood Lite<br />
<b>Editor</b>: <a href="http://kjablog.com/">Kevin J. Anderson</a><br />
<b>Start & Finished</b>: 6/9/10- 8/31/10<br />
<b>Published</b>: October 21, 2008<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Pocket Books- Simon & Schuster, Inc.<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 468<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Horror<br />
<br />
<i>Blood Lite</i> is a collection of stories written by members of the <a href="http://www.horror.org/">Horror Writers Association</a> featuring tales from award-winning, bestselling authors and even a few that are mostly unknown and only publish in the short story medium. This anthology contains stories about zombies, vampires, demons and angels, even a descendent of Dr. Frankenstein, not to mention homage’s to author’s works such as<a href="http://www.raybradbury.com/"> Ray Bradbury</a> and H.P. Lovecraft too. This book is edited together by Kevin J. Anderson, who is also a founding member of the Horror Writers Association, but he does not contribute to the collection.<br />
<br />
With every anthology you get some good, some bad, and some that are just okay and in Blood Lite you get a diverse collection of all of these things. Out of the 21 stories I only liked ten of them but there were six that were really good and they were by Kelley Armstrong, Lucien Soulban, Charlaine Harris, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Sharyn McCrumb, and Jim Butcher. I plan on picking up books by these author’s that I haven’t read very soon. <i>Blood Lite II: Overbite</i> comes out September 28, 2010.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> The Ungrateful Dead<br />
<b>Author</b>:<a href="http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/"> Kelley Armstrong</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 30<br />
<br />
Jaime Vegas first appeared in Canadian author Kelley Armstrong’s<i> <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/witches-sorcerers-vampires-werewolves.html">Industrial Magic</a></i>, the fourth book in her Women of the Otherworld series but didn’t get her own story until <i><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/sometimes-people-are-purest-form-of.html">No Humans Involved</a></i> which was book seven. The first story in the anthology is called <i>The Ungrateful Dead</i> and for once, Jaime is not being kidnapped but instead she’s being heckled by a rich, spoiled brat of a ghost who seems to think she “serves the dead,” all while on her séance tour too!<br />
<div style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOVVRzBKTws1FiK61bvJ_OOqqf_UOdg8d8yq-LOze6rqvN9B9ETpEwaFvgUWaYGIQeA_b2p4stIS8RryfCg3RVnGKUMFi6fUxr01iQXePnPnZcf9D1MUtaL-zNDyFBcoFlHam1mPk2uyD2/s1600/Blood-ungrateful.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOVVRzBKTws1FiK61bvJ_OOqqf_UOdg8d8yq-LOze6rqvN9B9ETpEwaFvgUWaYGIQeA_b2p4stIS8RryfCg3RVnGKUMFi6fUxr01iQXePnPnZcf9D1MUtaL-zNDyFBcoFlHam1mPk2uyD2/s200/Blood-ungrateful.png" width="200" /></a></div><br />
She’s not my favorite necromancer (that’s still Anita Blake even if the novels aren’t quite the same now), but Jaime is still one of Armstrong’s best characters from the Women of the Otherworld series. Her partner in crime in this story in Savannah who is the ward of Paige from<i> Dime Store Magic</i> and<i> Industrial Magic</i> but Savannah was probably my favorite character out of the entire piece. This was an extremely funny story whose ending I bemoaned because I still wanted to know what happened next.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: I see dead people. Unfortunately, they also see me.<br />
<br />
Links: <a href="http://www.kobobooks.com/content/The-Ungrateful-Dead-Kelley-Armstrong/sc-2j2dbw75WkeXVKzXfJUmVw/page1.html#1">Complete story</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Mr. Bear<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.joerlansdale.com/">Joe R. Lansdale</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 31<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4m5eBU0tKZ3ghpOLIq2_T8DcusADvrpresYe7PJy9prGLuLUljJorQWBCMdMVA0LxNmiWStX6-ljMrIhfAn44Qj4QZaetl-m9Ja8YBJNkwqZzhQX7JPAlRn6AC2TbubWXxKuPXXFs0d4K/s1600/Blood-Bear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4m5eBU0tKZ3ghpOLIq2_T8DcusADvrpresYe7PJy9prGLuLUljJorQWBCMdMVA0LxNmiWStX6-ljMrIhfAn44Qj4QZaetl-m9Ja8YBJNkwqZzhQX7JPAlRn6AC2TbubWXxKuPXXFs0d4K/s200/Blood-Bear.jpg" width="155" /></a>Joe R. Lansdale's contribution to this anthology was a story about Smokey the Bear, though he never comes right out and says that’s who it is. <i>Mr. Bear</i> is about a famous anthropomorphic bear that is described as being shirtless, “in dungarees and work boots, carrying a hat.” The main character is a man named Jim who this bear sits down next to on a plane and proceeds to brag about all the tail (though that isn’t quite the word he used) he gets and in general be disgusting. Then their plane gets stranded at their layover and then the “fun” begins. Mr. Bear and Jim have a night on the town, get in some trouble, and then make their way to Yellowstone Park. Oh, and Mr. Bear is slightly insane (“two to three berries short of a pie” he says) so poor Jim doesn’t have much choice in what happens after he gets off that plane.<br />
<br />
This was truly a disturbing short story that I didn’t enjoy at all. Smokey the Bear is a classic iconic American figure (supposedly the author does this often in his stories, once with Elvis and JFK) and <i>Mr. Bear</i> is just… disturbing. Think what it would be like if you mixed Howard Stern with a real bear and I think I’m insulting Howard Stern here. I won’t say that Mr. Lansdale’s story is badly written, I just didn’t like the subject. In fact, I’ll never be able to think of Smokey the Bear again without thinking of this story so though I really, really disliked it, Mr. Bear is certainly memorable.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: Jim watched as the plane filled up.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Hell in a Handbasket<br />
<b>Author:</b> Lucien Soulban<br />
<b>Pages</b>: 27<br />
<br />
A baby is left at the mouth of Hell in Lucien Soulban’s story<i> Hell in a Handbasket </i>and the only question is who is going to get to eat her? This takes place in what is supposed to be Dante’s Hell among many other cultures and religions and includes several demons from history such as Mastema, Gressil, Harpy, Furfur, Vassago (he appeared in Dean Koontz’s book<i><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/09/struggle-of-good-vs-evil.html"> Hideaway</a></i>), Mammon, and even ones from other cultures too (Heaven makes an appearance as well). Only Vassago knows what the child is and how to deal with her which the demons that want her for supper soon figure out themselves.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4KnGb-Kln-PRAsX5kiSpxo1yJEAssbYWIh2Y9LveqJVCofWd7Y7NwyqNCserchwzh-qvkheMggesdq3j2mUS_yVoKDltWwFBH01H5awzo8Befa5OfGvRt7qWhosvGt3kcliJOvfNHmUxI/s1600/blood-hell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4KnGb-Kln-PRAsX5kiSpxo1yJEAssbYWIh2Y9LveqJVCofWd7Y7NwyqNCserchwzh-qvkheMggesdq3j2mUS_yVoKDltWwFBH01H5awzo8Befa5OfGvRt7qWhosvGt3kcliJOvfNHmUxI/s200/blood-hell.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
An author and video game writer, Lucian Soulban (whose full name means Light-Bringer Moses Thanks Holy Crosses, literally) wrote what is probably one of the best, if not the best story in this anthology. I loved <i>Hell in a Handbasket</i> with all its characters but especially Vasaggo and Eve. What an incredibly inventive and funny story! Here are two of my favorite parts: “Right,” Gaap said, ribbing his fellow demon with his elbow. “Following orders. I think there’s a few Nazis in the Seventh and Eighth Circles still singing that tune.” and ‘Hell was like a trailer-trash family reunion on Jerry Springer. If demons weren’t fornicating with each other like country siblings, they were feuding and squabbling… sometimes in the middle of intercourse.’ Though <i>Hell in a Handbasket</i> isn't quite as raunchy as that sounds, it does have its moments. I will definitely be looking this author up soon.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence: </b>The basket sat at the foot of the Inferno’s red-hot, iron-wrought gates, below the steaming plate that read ABANDON ALL HOPE, YE WHO ENTER HERE!<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title</b>: The Eldritch Pastiche from Beyond the Shadow of Horror<br />
<b>Author:</b> Christopher Welch<br />
<b>Pages</b>: 18<br />
<br />
Addicted to writing what amounts to bad horror fanfiction of the Cthulu mythos, Chris seeks help in Christopher Welch's <i>The Eldritch Pastiche from Beyond the Shadow of Horror</i> but someone doesn’t want him to. The author says that his addition to Blood Lite “is more autobiographical than he likes to admit.”<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia1CcBNU06UMjs6umrpelZGOs3H-Vl-EKlhL66bX2OaPKKODqJTLfPPKandORj0ngljdUEPyTC2dYEUNoz6BrlAgN7OoLNrXYgnPSrM6l0gQtCCLpZ8JUeuOsDssGrv-dhe6uJHUer_LH-/s1600/Blood-Eldritch+Pastiche.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia1CcBNU06UMjs6umrpelZGOs3H-Vl-EKlhL66bX2OaPKKODqJTLfPPKandORj0ngljdUEPyTC2dYEUNoz6BrlAgN7OoLNrXYgnPSrM6l0gQtCCLpZ8JUeuOsDssGrv-dhe6uJHUer_LH-/s200/Blood-Eldritch+Pastiche.jpg" width="200" /></a>‘I cannot think that way anymore. The night sky was simply the night sky, not some infinite brooding sentience with a conspiratorial agenda to reveal indescribable terrors to a timid dreamer. I will not believe in monsters.’ I can admit to getting so lost in a fictional world and fictional characters that I had trouble afterwards thinking of anything else but I have never had it as bad as the main character in this short story. Lovecraft is an author I’ve never managed to read so I didn’t have the slightest clue who the characters were that are discussed so all of that was Greek to me, but I did like the idea of the story.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: I went through the motions, the ritualistic motions I had done hundreds of times.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Elvis Presley and the Bloodsucker Blues<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1107639/">Matt Vene</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 32<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.elvis.com/">Elvis</a> as a vampire… well it’s certainly been done before but Matt Vene takes a slightly different approach than the norm with his story <i>Elvis Presley and the Bloodsucker Blues</i>. In it, Elvis becomes a vampire which is why he stopped making movies and started Viva Las Vegas as well as how he got fat, (instead of biting people he started having blood transfusions) and eventually, setting the record straight on how he died. Everyone but the press knows about it too: ‘Some of the fellas in the Memphis Mafia took to teasin’ me about getting’ myself turned into a damned vampire, thought it was a real hoot to call me “Velvis, the Vampire Elvis.” That might seem like a funny reaction to you, but David and Jerry and Red and Lamar and the rest of the boys- they were used to crazy shit happenin’ all the time. Vampirism was just one more once-in-a-lifetime thing to add to their big old list of once-in-a-lifetime things that happened while hangin’ out with yours truly.’<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBvFtqpL_g6dZip2JYcgcHViH8D1g8MxL8W8UmzKUn5au1xHdrLLLAgYDImCAtZmF0ygjq5YCXHejIpFiDQoJayoJFqZ9QAcdyz3paifRl75hJrIFchr84sRT8HwvFAnalRYVs2ZfqECY/s1600/Blood-elvis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBvFtqpL_g6dZip2JYcgcHViH8D1g8MxL8W8UmzKUn5au1xHdrLLLAgYDImCAtZmF0ygjq5YCXHejIpFiDQoJayoJFqZ9QAcdyz3paifRl75hJrIFchr84sRT8HwvFAnalRYVs2ZfqECY/s200/Blood-elvis.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
A vampire Elvis who just happens to be a vampire hunter is certainly a unique idea and the way Mr. Vene plays with the myths of Elvis and brings a lot of real life things to the story is what made it so interesting. I’ve always liked early Elvis, who doesn’t? However, I’ve never seen any of his movies or know all that much about him so I think this particular story would appeal to more Elvis fans than me. I actually did like the story but it wasn’t one of the very best in this anthology. Matt Vene was a writer for the film White Noise 2 and is currently at work on the screenplay for the adaptation of Stephen King's <i>Bag of Bones</i>.<br />
<br />
<blockquote>And so the federal agent badge from the president… the weight gain from the blood transfusions… the superhuman improvement of my karate skills… even the addition of “…in a flash” to “Takin’ Care of Business…” (which became my code for “blast those vampires with sunlight, baby!”) It all makes a bit more sense now, don’t it?</blockquote><br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: Well, ain’t this just a kicker?<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title: </b>No Problem<br />
<b>Author</b>: <a href="http://www.dondammassa.com/">Don D’Ammassa</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 22<br />
<br />
In Don D’Ammassa’s short story <i>No Problem</i>, a scientist studying biochemistry at Brown University discovers some old family journals and learns that he’s the great-great-great grandson of Viktor Frankenstein. After reading some of Frankenstein’s accounts, Herbert Franken throws out his research and begins his studies anew. He says, “Please don’t get the impression that I had suddenly turned into some kind of mad scientist. I had no intention of digging up dead bodies at midnight, erecting a lightening rod on my roof, or stealing brains from Brown University.” However, when he accidentally kills his nosy next door neighbor is when it starts to get hairy.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvHtl-ouomxEbyRBH2cWYlejZAGd7Vo3e4K0F1uavLS0bvzkF9VqfZVmyPu3I6_QCHme-lJG1io1wp1KwrmoQwXBByJC4w_xvkrWrNOUN_fMWejJHc24KgqTcDAXHlEBM3Khv9ysV_5CEZ/s1600/Blood-no+problem.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvHtl-ouomxEbyRBH2cWYlejZAGd7Vo3e4K0F1uavLS0bvzkF9VqfZVmyPu3I6_QCHme-lJG1io1wp1KwrmoQwXBByJC4w_xvkrWrNOUN_fMWejJHc24KgqTcDAXHlEBM3Khv9ysV_5CEZ/s200/Blood-no+problem.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
The story of Dr. Frankenstein and his monster are almost as well known as Dracula and have been represented in fiction and film for years yet this author takes a softer approach to the reinterpretation of the story. Herbert isn’t a mad scientist but he is a scientist (the kind that experiments on animals), yet he reminded me of that guy that was in a CSI episode who didn’t mean to kill anyone and somehow wound up with all these dead bodies around him. I neither liked nor disliked this particular story, probably because it was over too fast for me to even figure out how I felt about the main character. The idea of the story interests me though as I could easily see this as an episode of Supernatural or something.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: I swear I had good intentions.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Old School<br />
<b>Author</b>: <a href="http://www.markonspaugh.com/">Mark Onspaugh</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 4<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1yO9jaTN6cLS4TP6sQnnqHkvWb-JSVYeSDKv0Jo-oMp4al_8DBBvhSq9qbJz8z3XD5bYqczNFfk_WYVN7G6TpMfWSHEPQ3VkF0AXXUU3vF-lOsij4hz2xC34Mf3mZkgJIyaJSTcaJ5YTt/s1600/Blood-old+school.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1yO9jaTN6cLS4TP6sQnnqHkvWb-JSVYeSDKv0Jo-oMp4al_8DBBvhSq9qbJz8z3XD5bYqczNFfk_WYVN7G6TpMfWSHEPQ3VkF0AXXUU3vF-lOsij4hz2xC34Mf3mZkgJIyaJSTcaJ5YTt/s200/Blood-old+school.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The seventh story in Blood Lite is called <i>Old School</i> and comes from fiction and film writer Mark Onspaugh. It’s only a little over 3 pages long but in it a group of teenagers get together to try to raise a corpse, mostly to impress the Goth girl one of them has a crush on. Of course their plans go awry…<br />
<br />
Well done Mr. Onspaugh! You did in a very few pages what others in this anthology couldn’t in more than 20 and that’s write a small piece of a story and yet make it seem longer than it is. Zombies are one of the two horror monsters I can’t have anything to do with but I didn’t mind <i>Old School</i>. I’m not quite sure I understand the last sentence but overall this was an okay story done in the “old school” way of 80’s teen horror flicks.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: “And arise!”<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> The Sound of Blunder<br />
<b>Author: </b><a href="http://www.jakonrath.com/">J.A. Konrath</a> & <a href="http://www.repairmanjack.com/">F. Paul Wilson</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 39<br />
<br />
The only story to be written by two authors and the longest story in the anthology, <i>The Sound of Blunder</i> by J.A. Konrath & F. Paul Wilson features two small time crooks Mick and Willie. After (Mick the Mick’s partner in crime’s Nana bakes a pound cake using a key of cocaine that they were holding for a mobster, they need to figure out a way to come up with some money quick because after all, “no junkie is going to snort baked goods.” So they hit upon the idea of robbing the Pennsylvania Museum of Natural History and Baseball Cards where they hope to steal an artifact but end up getting sent through time. This story was inspired by Ray Bradbury’s<i> The Sound of Thunder</i>.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXm8uPGNCSkyvjmh2vGTfkAPfpjIZCFnKpHNoSGq7GjvCwToo6q5KvozcnT61wAqfVhXjrhSxy7VYFDCufEZFXebBgEx6O8WUS4qklfpEMDPlpOTCI0t5xtrIFk9soRwqNiKYBE-TksyQc/s1600/Blood-sound+of+blunder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXm8uPGNCSkyvjmh2vGTfkAPfpjIZCFnKpHNoSGq7GjvCwToo6q5KvozcnT61wAqfVhXjrhSxy7VYFDCufEZFXebBgEx6O8WUS4qklfpEMDPlpOTCI0t5xtrIFk9soRwqNiKYBE-TksyQc/s200/Blood-sound+of+blunder.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
What I would like to know is which author did what in this story. The beginning was fine with the introduction of Mick the leader and Willie his ADHD and seemingly hypochondriac friend even if some of the humor seemed a little flat but once the supernatural element of <i>The Sound of Blunder</i> kicked in it was all down hill from there. It did remind me of something; a Simpson’s episode I believe, that was also based on the Ray Bradbury book (I think it may be mentioned vaguely in this story actually). This wasn’t a bad homage to Mr. Bradbury’s book and I did like it more than some of the others in this book but it doesn’t really stand out in this collection either. Konrath writes a series featuring Lt. Jack Daniels and Wilson is an award-winning author.<br />
<br />
<b>First 2 Sentences</b>: “We’re dead! We’re freakin’ dead!”<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title</b>: An Evening with Al Gore<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.charlaineharris.com/">Charlaine Harris</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 29<br />
<br />
At first it may seem as if Charlaine Harris’ ecological short story <i>An Evening with Al Gore</i> may not be suitable for this collection and though it has an extremely slow start, the end (last four pages) are… something else. Ms. Harris said it, "was so much fun because it was completely different from anything I’d written before, I worked with the idea for a while before I got it all ironed out. And, I’d just watched Al Gore’s movie [<i>An Inconvenient Truth</i>], of course he’s absolutely right. He’s been proven right, he was right before anyone believed it, he’s right now that everyone believes it and they’re not doing anything about it. I just thought, what if people really acted on Al Gore’s suggestions? This is the supernatural reaction to Al Gore saying we should green up…"<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfCsc4JvIzbZ5OdKeeMYZpiATqfiLiUbQ9i65Fh5XJteosAIoV2OxXmcadP6QcBNudatIzl_RYYwVHPUWdAYamORvrQ4GBENvcms3tnB_zGZdYPzzB9Dud6LLSWE2vUx7SSW7mMkYW-3ma/s1600/Blood-al+gore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfCsc4JvIzbZ5OdKeeMYZpiATqfiLiUbQ9i65Fh5XJteosAIoV2OxXmcadP6QcBNudatIzl_RYYwVHPUWdAYamORvrQ4GBENvcms3tnB_zGZdYPzzB9Dud6LLSWE2vUx7SSW7mMkYW-3ma/s200/Blood-al+gore.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
The main reason I bought this book was for Ms. Harris’ contribution but I must confess I thought it was about either Sookie (like most of her short stories) or one of her other characters. Toddy and Mark were staid, laidback people which made the twist and the end even more of a surprise. I did like the end of this story a lot, though I’m not as environmentally aware as I would like to be. I couldn’t see the author turning this into a series but I really wouldn’t mind characters like them (even though not these in particular) if she decided to do something else. She usually has at least two series running simultaneously and she just ended her Harper Connelly books.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: Toddy Makepeace had seen Al Gore speak the previous spring, and a year later she hadn’t quite gotten over it.<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Dear Prudence<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.stevensavile.com/">Steven Savile</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 11<br />
<br />
Steven Savile’s main character Miller is writing his lovely wife a quick note to let her know he’s going out and then proceeds to fantasize about what he’d really love to say to her in the story <i>Dear Prudence.</i> Each letter more disturbing than the previous though there is no real supernatural element involved in this one. <i>Dear Prudence</i> is the first one in this book that doesn’t have some kind of supernatural or paranormal event or creature in it.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGfkvBk7odiI2VIhQJUyvYqpNYHZ2Ng71yYoWWq9SnSDPBhzgbMl53tklUfazbWA1aRU_zC_B_yZu7SNzcRM9MX6M3pUwp5j4qKjqKdw-5M_SN1duRKvww6E8OB4ahwSjYIu8w4EXIz0Ak/s1600/Blood-dear+pru.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGfkvBk7odiI2VIhQJUyvYqpNYHZ2Ng71yYoWWq9SnSDPBhzgbMl53tklUfazbWA1aRU_zC_B_yZu7SNzcRM9MX6M3pUwp5j4qKjqKdw-5M_SN1duRKvww6E8OB4ahwSjYIu8w4EXIz0Ak/s200/Blood-dear+pru.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
‘Fed into a wood chipper. How much Pru would a wood chipper chip if a wood chipper could chip Pru? That’s today’s million-dollar question.’ Can you tell that the main character in this story really, really dislikes his wife? The author says that “he doesn’t fantasize about killing his wife. Honestly.” Yeah, if I were Ms. Savile I would start sleeping with one eye open… This was certainly a different turn in the anthology because none of the previous stories were about the evil humans can do, or in this case, fantasize about doing all by their selves without supernatural influence.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: Miller held the pen poised over the scrap of paper, thinking about what he would write.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> A Good Psycho is Hard to Find<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.will-ludwigsen.com/wp/">Will Ludwigsen</a><br />
<b>Pages:</b> 11<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDhWpas4PHeF3ZZ0Hv0qiJEwNTBTGwedQV1vfBvh_DH2p0Z6X-rEl46QqA9VN4m2rpdkTACWFgx4uByIcCwPbnhHRxOSEqhHjDaRwCeGuxwebRqIAhQSZBx67Z-rFVGPZX4Rz-4r3RjM02/s1600/blood-good+psycho.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDhWpas4PHeF3ZZ0Hv0qiJEwNTBTGwedQV1vfBvh_DH2p0Z6X-rEl46QqA9VN4m2rpdkTACWFgx4uByIcCwPbnhHRxOSEqhHjDaRwCeGuxwebRqIAhQSZBx67Z-rFVGPZX4Rz-4r3RjM02/s200/blood-good+psycho.jpg" width="200" /></a>Chet and his girlfriend Misty find life dull in <i>A Good Psycho is Hard to Find </i>by Will Ludwigsen. After fighting off a psychopath with a chainsaw at a camp where they were counselors, the two seek to recapture that rush. However, ‘Bungee jumping and race-car school didn’t capture the same feeling. The risk was too arbitrary, accidental. [He] needed the personal touch of another human being going out of his or her way to kill [him], not the capricious hand of fate.” Just how are they going to get that feeling back?<br />
<br />
A short story writer of mainly horror, Mr. Ludwigsen fits in fine in this anthology. This story follows on the heels of another that has nothing to do with the supernatural and more about the evil of human nature. <i>A Good Psycho is Hard to Find</i> actually wasn’t a bad story and I thought it was well-written too. The ending was a little gruesome but the story does make me curious if other real life survivors have had a similar reaction to violence that these two did.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b><i>:</i> At least with the Chainsaw Guy, you always knew where you stood.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title</b>: High Kicks and Misdemeanors<br />
<b>Author</b>: <a href="http://www.janetberliner.com/">Janet Berliner</a><br />
<b>Pages:</b> 23<br />
<br />
Legs Cleaveland is the main character in Janet Berliner’s <i>High Kicks and Misdemeanors</i> and he is a Las Vegas “self-styled talent scout with a penchant for long-legged chorines.” However after a couple of dead bodies show up near him and he needs some advice one what to do, he heads to his great-uncle Willie Downtown, the scariest loan shark in the city. He’s a great believer in his spirit guide, which happens to be an ostrich and there are some people using his and other ostriches to further their own political agenda.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJQZvAdAuoSA4ojbA__7m9TCBj3XFeFqt6gVcY9vSQGP26y0hVBwigU3e8DcO-tBmxCziwCaRUNt2bTQW7A_sOw5qIqzLMTcNUwybZZ7xzwAc3f-Mo3sxBtV04UCvoM_UWX69Tv-TBdP9/s1600/Blood-high+kicks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJQZvAdAuoSA4ojbA__7m9TCBj3XFeFqt6gVcY9vSQGP26y0hVBwigU3e8DcO-tBmxCziwCaRUNt2bTQW7A_sOw5qIqzLMTcNUwybZZ7xzwAc3f-Mo3sxBtV04UCvoM_UWX69Tv-TBdP9/s200/Blood-high+kicks.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
What an extremely odd little story. I can honestly say I’ve never read anything quite like it before. Well, I don’t make a practice of reading about ostriches in general anyway because they kind of creep me out. I can’t say I really liked this one because it was so far-fetched that it was over my head however, I still have to give props for originality. However, I really want to know the how and why of Willie’s story and while Legs seemed like a bit of a sleaze he was the only sane part of this story so I’d like to know what happened to him as well. The author has written another story with Legs as a character called <i>Amazing Grace: A 'Legs' Cleveland Musical Production</i>.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence:</b> Most things that happen in Vegas stay in Vegas because no one outside the city would believe them.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> PR Problems<br />
<b>Author</b>:<a href="http://www.ericjamesstone.com/blog/home/"> Eric James Stone</a><br />
<b>Pages:</b> 10<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YBmItbZPQIzqlF2gcnm0xE7DwsJW63B5fM3DUxfTnCc-u8PsTm0xPMccRmDSqxjz-SEa3cGDjH6fD_lke0FOytRL3duf5G27AkxQR5J-JrOWgXZYOfJxURJzK6zRgzHRmCQE9oIu5kc2/s1600/Blood-PR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YBmItbZPQIzqlF2gcnm0xE7DwsJW63B5fM3DUxfTnCc-u8PsTm0xPMccRmDSqxjz-SEa3cGDjH6fD_lke0FOytRL3duf5G27AkxQR5J-JrOWgXZYOfJxURJzK6zRgzHRmCQE9oIu5kc2/s200/Blood-PR.jpg" width="181" /></a></div>Mr. Ahsani the ghoul (which transforms into a hyena and is not undead in the slightest but does eat carrion) is sick of vampires and werewolves getting all the good press while he’s stuck at a custodian job in <i>PR Problems</i> by Eric James Stone. He soon discovers the serial killer that the press nicknamed the “Grove City Ghoul” actually is living in his building, what is he going to do?<br />
<br />
<i>PR Problems</i> was one of the very best short stories in the Blood Lite collection. The main character of Mr. Ahsani constantly surprised me. He’s a ghoul but he’s not a killer, he’s genuinely relieved when one of his neighbors arrives home because it means she didn’t get snatched by the killer, and he tries to rescue someone when he probably could have gotten away first. Altogether not a bad guy… if you look past the eating dead flesh part.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: What annoys me the most about vampires and werewolves is their good PR.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Where Angels Fear to Tread<br />
<b>Author: </b><a href="http://www.sherrilynkenyon.com/">Sherrilyn Kenyon</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 18<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJIQa2K0rGIsEion4ZLQAm8TDZF24I7noVGH9AACN_sVhqawlCvsZH3vB7_n7lcYznavE2H26Nl-fIXNk5fTYTNLbm_d5XzyFdGXNvJYhfblBn-R_yeWajWduFcp3-28Wq_ZHYLKnSdWE/s1600/Blood-Where+angels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJIQa2K0rGIsEion4ZLQAm8TDZF24I7noVGH9AACN_sVhqawlCvsZH3vB7_n7lcYznavE2H26Nl-fIXNk5fTYTNLbm_d5XzyFdGXNvJYhfblBn-R_yeWajWduFcp3-28Wq_ZHYLKnSdWE/s200/Blood-Where+angels.jpg" width="200" /></a><i>Where Angels Fear to Tread</i> is the first of Sherrilyn Kenyon's Hellchasers which is a group featured in her Dream-Hunter novels (starting with <i>Bad Moon Rising</i>) and who are important to Nick (from the book <i>Fear the Darkness</i>). Working a dead-end job where he constantly gets screamed at by callers, Zeke is in for a bit of a shock once he inherits some things from his estranged granduncle. One of those things is a medallion with something special about it. See how Zeke got his powers!<br />
<br />
Sherrilyn Kenyon is a fairly well-known name and yet I’ve never managed to read anything by her before so I did not have the slightest clue what to expect going in this story but if the rest of her books are anything like this, I’m definitely picking them up. I did feel like I was being plunked down in the middle of a bigger plot but I really did like this particular addition to the anthology. There’s a lot of great humor with somewhat modern reference in the book and that was my favorite part. This is an introduction of an already established character from what I can gather but I still enjoyed this story a lot.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: “From humble beginnings come great things.”<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title</b>: A Very Special Girl<br />
<b>Author</b>: <a href="http://www.fortunecity.com/tattooine/farmer/2/">Mike Resnick</a><br />
<b>Pages:</b> 21<br />
<br />
The “all-time leading award winner for short fiction,” including five Hugo awards, author Mike Resnick writes about his character Harry the Book in his story<i> A Very Special Girl</i>. Harry has appeared in other stories by this author including<i> A Very Formal Affair</i> and <i>The Blimp and the Sixpence</i> but in this one, Harry’s employee Dead End Dugan falls in love and gives Harry’s three grand away. So of course he sets out to retrieve it.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2YhBmVATUnfG1r1W4PrlnnO-ab_-Revf5VnhTfYsu_lDbIx2UXguHbVXZhRGFiXCekHGoXNPByOZ1NIY6sQyHAxO0GkxPrhiFmUlGR0IKmCGK8eGB1iLw_yAi_EV42YsPumez3jm-KPqc/s1600/Blood-very+special+girl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2YhBmVATUnfG1r1W4PrlnnO-ab_-Revf5VnhTfYsu_lDbIx2UXguHbVXZhRGFiXCekHGoXNPByOZ1NIY6sQyHAxO0GkxPrhiFmUlGR0IKmCGK8eGB1iLw_yAi_EV42YsPumez3jm-KPqc/s200/Blood-very+special+girl.jpg" width="173" /></a>A very awkwardly written story, that I felt like I was missing something vital. The author just drops us into this world where zombies and creatures like Anna exist and doesn’t explain anything, we’re just along for the ride. I did feel like I might have liked this story if I understood what was going on, what exactly is Harry, where exactly are they, and why it seemed like some of the dialogue was badly translated or something.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence:</b> I am reading the Daily Racing Form in my temporary office, which is the third booth at Joey Chicago’s 3-Star Tavern, and coming to the conclusion that six trillion to one on Flyaway in the fifth at Saratoga is a bit of an underlay, as there is no way this horse gets within twenty lengths of the winner on a fast track, a slow track, or a muddy track, I have my doubts that even a rain of toads moves him up more than two lengths.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title</b>: Love Seat Solitaire<br />
<b>Author:</b><a href="http://marketscoops.blogspot.com/"> D.L. Snell</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 21<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_kxJGmZpD2Gi2nljglhkvCX2WZSdLGPsOMbnZijkWvouvpSSOHo3vWyLWq5TCTemqfN-7mIlHuEX3n7V1WJlB63JQemHzFlDbiSV49BKsV5zN_th74XmyE1VMzbArPSpm7C9cRay5nMgO/s1600/Blood-love+seat+solittaire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_kxJGmZpD2Gi2nljglhkvCX2WZSdLGPsOMbnZijkWvouvpSSOHo3vWyLWq5TCTemqfN-7mIlHuEX3n7V1WJlB63JQemHzFlDbiSV49BKsV5zN_th74XmyE1VMzbArPSpm7C9cRay5nMgO/s200/Blood-love+seat+solittaire.jpg" width="200" /></a>A bunch of bachelor guys are sitting around playing Street Fighter when the apartment’s poltergeist starts to act up in<i> Love Seat Solitaire</i> by D. L. Snell. At first it just little things but then soon as one of the characters puts it, “Casper’s gone Michael Myers on us.” Better do what he wants or else!<br />
<br />
Mr. Snell’s story had some funny parts and an extremely odd ending but for the most part I thought<i> Love Seat Solitaire</i> was extremely crude. I’m guessing that Sam, Dave, and Jess are college kids since Sam owns his own apartment but they act more like high school students. I could easily see this as one of those slapstick comedy horror movies or something (which I really don‘t like).<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: “Dude,“ Jess said, pushing up his glasses, “the kitchen table’s floating again.”<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> I Know Who You Ate Last Summer<br />
<b>Author</b>: <a href="http://nancyholder.com/">Nancy Holder</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 17<br />
<br />
Rock star cannibals are next in Nancy Holder’s story<i> I Know Who You Ate Last Summer</i>. Angelo and Dwight have been friends since they were kids and it was Angelo with his trust fund that got them to Hollywood and set up to be musicians. However, it was Dwight that helped them both discover the love of human flesh. Now someone is sending text messages saying they know who they ate last summer and their lives are never going to be the same.<br />
<br />
This was another odd story that I didn’t particularly care for. No one was likeable in the least bit and Dwight was just seriously creepy… well, they both were actually. I have heard of this author before but I’ve never tried anything by her. She definitely made her main character seem crazy if that was what she was trying to go for. I’m still not quite sure where Ms. Holder was going with this story and it just kind of ends abruptly too.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: “That should be ‘whom,’” Carla M. said, “and that’s part of the problem.”<br />
<br />
<b>Title</b>: Bitches of the Night<br />
<b>Author:</b> Nancy Kirkpatrick<br />
<b>Pages:</b> 27<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo3_fK_OeEHnChkuPWMVJM4wj_E-w20mALl-4A1XcekNys6f4zLqZCDKwTXWcj8dmCJSHNpKOaFJR1WDw6i4M_S2hmZrXZ8n-9JISdCA7HHRGCSeCytZnHrQ8kXymCCUW1KLtx9_XuF9ut/s1600/Blood-bitches.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo3_fK_OeEHnChkuPWMVJM4wj_E-w20mALl-4A1XcekNys6f4zLqZCDKwTXWcj8dmCJSHNpKOaFJR1WDw6i4M_S2hmZrXZ8n-9JISdCA7HHRGCSeCytZnHrQ8kXymCCUW1KLtx9_XuF9ut/s200/Blood-bitches.jpg" width="200" /></a>Nancy Kirkpatrick explores how Dracula (in this case a vampire named Istvan) would have felt if all his brides were modern women in <i>Bitches of the Night</i>. Poor Istvan is sick and tired of being henpecked by his brides when all he wants to do is relax, drink a little O Negative and watch re-runs on TV.<br />
<br />
While some may find the idea of a henpecked, impotent vampire humorous I just thought it was depressing. The story wasn’t horrible and I liked the way the author described things but I just felt bad for Istvan. I also wasn’t impressed with the idea of all women vampires becoming air-headed harpies either. I can't find much about this author except a collection of her vampire stories where she is called "Canada's Queen of the Undead."<br />
<br />
<b>First 2 Sentences</b>: “Dis night, you vill take two each, a male and a female. And dis time, no AB negative!”<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title</b>: The Bell… FROM HELL!!!<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://jeffstrand.wordpress.com/">Jeff Strand</a><br />
<b>Pages:</b> 11<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVVa6acq6XiIAP92uCFuzz5HafbpY1-1Xp6M77F8nC_GvpwK-mHQSsrcP18Q58cXPEjBJzCKvdkQxE9T9ui9-ip7p19bhZPPCgQPmr206d0U4LrMzF38okaSnx4HRb5_mbVILsr4_H55yw/s1600/Blood-bell.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVVa6acq6XiIAP92uCFuzz5HafbpY1-1Xp6M77F8nC_GvpwK-mHQSsrcP18Q58cXPEjBJzCKvdkQxE9T9ui9-ip7p19bhZPPCgQPmr206d0U4LrMzF38okaSnx4HRb5_mbVILsr4_H55yw/s200/Blood-bell.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>In Jeff Strand’s story a guy named Howie buys <i>The Bell… FROM HELL!!!</i> However, none of his coworkers believe him so they constantly tease him about it. Finally fed up with their teasing, Howie decides to ring the bell the required six hundred and sixty-six times to prove once and for all that he has a bell to summon Satan.<br />
<br />
Possibly the only story out of this anthology that doesn’t fit, Jeff Strand’s story can be taken two ways: either Howie really does have a bell that summons Satan or that he’s just nuts. I think this one was supposed to be cute but it came off as just strained to me. I do wish the ending had been a little different though! Supposedly there is a sequel to this story coming out in<i> Blood Lite II</i>.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence:</b> I own a bell forged by Satan himself.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Dead Hand<br />
<b>Author</b>: <a href="http://www.sharynmccrumb.com/">Sharyn McCrumb</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 23<br />
<br />
The award-winning author of the book St. Dale (which is the story of ordinary people going on a pilgrimage in honor of Dale Earnhardt and finding a miracle), Sharyn McCrumb says, “Writing about NASCAR was a wonderful experience for me. After spending my adolescence writing term papers and avoiding proms, I am now jumping hills at one hundred mph with a race car driver on Virginia back roads, and it is glorious.” Perhaps it was the acclaim she had gotten from writing about NASCAR (it got her invited to the White House and in touch with several Fortune 500 winners) that inspired her to write another NASCAR story called<i> Dead Hand. </i>This time about a little failing team of drivers who do things the old way still and are losing badly until their Cherokee chief mechanic works up a bit of magic to bring back the ghost of driver known as The Champ who had died in a plane crash.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaRl3qXuTx8oCb0KbAawzBfeQwINg9AuJ9Vay1sMJ0Wahw7YgXXHyx72xi42gkaoXgAqJ6a9s9LsjAGkMsnem9tSXxMV3xN2skT4lkbL8M6mDWH5aJmx3LleOPbbvOMzLhiCZ-GSIVE27h/s1600/Blood-dead+hand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaRl3qXuTx8oCb0KbAawzBfeQwINg9AuJ9Vay1sMJ0Wahw7YgXXHyx72xi42gkaoXgAqJ6a9s9LsjAGkMsnem9tSXxMV3xN2skT4lkbL8M6mDWH5aJmx3LleOPbbvOMzLhiCZ-GSIVE27h/s200/Blood-dead+hand.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
NASCAR and racing have always bored me to tears when my dad was watching (it’s his favorite “sport” and the only one he watches) or when my husband’s uncle would take us to see the guys he sponsors but reading and watching movies about racing is a whole different thing. I love those! <i>Dead Hand</i> was easily one of the best stories in this anthology though I wish it were a little longer and didn’t have such a sad ending. Rattler and the Champ were great though and I hope the author writes about their back stories one day.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: I don’t hold with talking to dead people.<br />
<br />
<b>Title:</b> Day Off<br />
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.jim-butcher.com/">Jim Butcher</a><br />
<b>Pages</b>: 33<br />
<br />
Harry Dresden, “Chicago’s only professional wizard, shamus of the supernatural, gumshoe of the ghostly, and wiseguy of the weird is looking forward to his <i>Day Off </i>in Jim Butcher’s short story however, someone up there is bound and determined that he doesn’t get to rest. First, some wizard-wannabes start harassing him, then his assistant proceeds to accidentally blow up his lab, and finally two of his friends that occasionally shift into wolves have a problem and need his help as well. Will Harry ever get to go one his date? Jim Butcher is a well-known, award-winning author of the Dresden Files series of which <i>Day Off</i> takes place.<br />
<br />
While I’ve always liked Harry Dresden and his author Jim Butcher, I’ve never managed to read one of the actual books in the series. I have however, read a lot of short stories that feature the wizard and I’ve loved every one of them. Even if I always feel like I’m missing certain things that reading the books would answer for me, I always enjoy the stories anyway. That’s including <i>Day Off</i>! It was funny, interesting, and it has definitely made me want to go out and pick up the actual series.<br />
<br />
<b>First Sentence</b>: The thief was examining another trapped doorway when I heard something-- the tromp of approaching feet.<br />
<br />
<br />
Source: My personal collection, paperback<br />
<div><br />
</div><div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><u>Related Reviews</u></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Kelley Armstrong</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Women of the Otherworld Series<br />
1. Bitten (2001)<br />
2. Stolen (2002)<br />
3. Dime Store Magic (2003)<br />
4. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/witches-sorcerers-vampires-werewolves.html">Industrial Magic</a> (2004)<br />
5. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/afterlife-isnt-all-its-cracked-up-to-be.html">Haunted</a> (2005)<br />
6. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/even-pregnant-elena-still-kicks-butt.html">Broken</a> (2006)<br />
7. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/sometimes-people-are-purest-form-of.html">No Humans Involved</a> (2007)<br />
8. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/10/loving-chaos.html">Personal Demon</a> (2008)<br />
9. Living with the Dead (2008)<br />
10. Frost Bitten (2009)<br />
11. Waking the Witch (2010)<br />
12. Spellbound (2011)<br />
<br />
Darkest Powers Series</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">1. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/10/she-doesnt-want-to-see-dead-people.html">The Summoning</a> (2008)<br />
2. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/12/on-run.html">The Awakening</a> (2009)<br />
3. The Reckoning (2010)<br />
<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Nadia Stafford Series<br />
1. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/05/hitwoman.html">Exit Strategy</a> (2007)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/05/hitwoman.html"></a>2. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2011/02/no-one-cares-except-hitwoman.html">Made to Be Broken</a> (2009)<br />
<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Anthologies<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/four-otherworldly-tales-of-paranormal.html">Dates from Hell</a> (2006)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/four-otherworldly-tales-of-paranormal.html"></a><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/04/after-i-dos.html">My Big Fat Honeymoon</a> (2007)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/04/after-i-dos.html"></a><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/04/anthology-of-birthdays-with-bite.html">Many Bloody Returns</a> (2007)<br />
<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>J.A. Konrath</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/12/have-furry-christmas.html">Wolfsbane and Mistletoe</a> anthology- S.A. by J.A. Konrath<br />
<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Jim Butcher</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/04/anthology-of-birthdays-with-bite.html">Many Bloody Returns </a>anthology</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/04/after-i-dos.html">My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon</a> anthology<br />
<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Charlaine Harris</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Sookie Stackhouse<br />
1. Dead Until Dark (2001)<br />
2. Living Dead in Dallas (2002)<br />
3. Club Dead (2003)<br />
4. Dead to the World (2004)<br />
5. Dead as a Doornail (2005)<br />
6. Definitely Dead (2006)<br />
7. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/08/ignore-ugly-cover-this-is-great-series.html">All Together Dead</a> (2007)<br />
8. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/09/sookie-8.html">From Dead to Worse</a> (2008)<br />
9. Dead and Gone (2009)<br />
10. Dead in the Family (2010)<br />
11. Dead Reckoning (2011)<br />
<br />
Aurora Teagarden Series:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1453328246">1. Real Murders (1989)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1453328246">2. A Bone to Pick (1992)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1453328246">3. Three Bedrooms, One Corpse (1994)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/05/aurora-teagarden-series-books-1-4.html">4. The Julius House (1995)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1453328250">5. Dead Over Heels (1996)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1453328250">6. A Fool and His Honey (1999)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1453328250">7. Last Scene Alive (2002)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/05/aurora-teagarden-series-books-5-8.html">8. Poppy Done to Death (2003)</a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Harper Connelly Series<br />
1. Grave Sight (2005)</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">2. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/they-want-to-be-found-you-know.html">Grave Surprise</a> (2006)</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">3. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/06/its-dangerous-job-but-no-one-else-can.html">An Ice Cold Grave</a> (2007)</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">4. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/01/they-all-want-to-be-found.html">Grave Secret</a> (2009)</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Anthologies</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/04/anthology-of-birthdays-with-bite.html">Many Bloody Returns</a> (2007)</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/12/have-furry-christmas.html">Wolfsbane and Mistletoe</a> (2008)</div></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-38924374990460142872010-09-13T22:16:00.001-05:002011-02-13T23:49:11.698-06:00The Race is On for the Grail<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi472W6Wb03Yg41rdryvHHA2ULnNAqpmqzr7GAs6RZq2Bzazpr-yna0nqpyh6xCpYf14bvKRX3_B2Poxj0WGuskbxPlKkDsES3Toi2oLYd1q6LuU8ZvnF42pimqdsx5-Ch3C_hiHNBTFAB1/s1600/Over-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi472W6Wb03Yg41rdryvHHA2ULnNAqpmqzr7GAs6RZq2Bzazpr-yna0nqpyh6xCpYf14bvKRX3_B2Poxj0WGuskbxPlKkDsES3Toi2oLYd1q6LuU8ZvnF42pimqdsx5-Ch3C_hiHNBTFAB1/s320/Over-main.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi472W6Wb03Yg41rdryvHHA2ULnNAqpmqzr7GAs6RZq2Bzazpr-yna0nqpyh6xCpYf14bvKRX3_B2Poxj0WGuskbxPlKkDsES3Toi2oLYd1q6LuU8ZvnF42pimqdsx5-Ch3C_hiHNBTFAB1/s1600/Over-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></a></blockquote><blockquote><i>"You can search and search on a quest, and in the end you may never get there at all," Barney warned Simon and Jane. The three Drew children, on holiday in Cornwall, had found a crumbling parchment map and embarked on a hunt for ancient treasure linked with King Arthur. The treasure, which lay "over sea, under stone," was more precious than life itself, for, if found by the right people, it would help keep at bay the ancient forces of evil that were once again powerful in the world.</i></blockquote><blockquote><i>The children soon find themselves beset by deadly dangers that involve the local vicar as well as a curiously menacing man and his sister, who arrive in the little harbor on a gleaming white yacht. The imperiled children turn for help to their Great-Uncle Merry, a renowned scholar, who draws on his vast knowledge of ancient lore to protect them. And when the treasure is almost theirs, Barney, Simon, and Jane find themselves trapped by the rising tide between cliff and sea.</i></blockquote><blockquote><i>With its powerful, mystical theme, Over Sea, Under Stone begins Susan Cooper's award-winning sequence, The Dark is Rising.</i></blockquote><br />
<b>Title:</b> Over Sea, Under Stone<br />
<b>Author:</b> Susan Cooper<br />
<b>Series: </b>The Dark is Rising Sequence, Book 1<br />
<b>Start & Finished:</b> 8/23/10- 8/26/10<br />
<b>Published</b>: May 1965<br />
<b>Publisher</b>: Jonathan Cape<br />
<b>Pages: </b>252 (hardcover)<br />
<b>Genre</b>: YA- Adventure<br />
<br />
The only book in the Dark is Rising Sequence that Susan Cooper wrote before she left England (written for a publishing company competition) to live in the United States, <i>Over Sea, Under Stone</i> is the first book in a five part award-winning series but it’s more of a prequel and the fantasy elements that are much more prevalent in the later books are only hinted at here. This entire series is clearly a struggle between good and evil with Arthurian lore and other British mythology thrown in. The author said she had intended for this book to be an adventure tale “but magic kept creeping in.”<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4hh-jdcmU-h304o-WWpJAWlHcpsclK4us5VgcNdMj0oBsk1M5UXMb8hNZoo6hDal2bTPuToKqXuTgaiI0XkVR3_I3datwKE74iHjimP4rIQ-wJ4jStBTjz1Hlk4TKNOp6WP38ErfLfY4e/s1600/Over-beach+cornwall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="148" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4hh-jdcmU-h304o-WWpJAWlHcpsclK4us5VgcNdMj0oBsk1M5UXMb8hNZoo6hDal2bTPuToKqXuTgaiI0XkVR3_I3datwKE74iHjimP4rIQ-wJ4jStBTjz1Hlk4TKNOp6WP38ErfLfY4e/s200/Over-beach+cornwall.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
Ms. Cooper said, “Once I was writing fantasy, I don't think I really thought about it. I just felt I'd come home. You don't say to yourself, I am writing fantasy. You don't even say to yourself, I am writing for kids. You just tell the story.” In this book the Drew children- Simon, Barney, and Jane- find an extremely old map in the attic of the house their Great-Uncle Merry (Gumerry) is renting in Trewissick which is in Cornwall, England. The map is supposed to lead to a grail from King Arthur’s era and is said to have answers about who the Pendragon was and will be again. Trewissick is actually a fictional place based on a village in southern Cornwall called Mevagissey. There are several bad people after the map and the treasure and they are just the latest in a long line of people who have been looking for it then the bad guys learn of the existence of the map and the race is on! Surprisingly, the quest wasn’t all that long but I thought the clues were clever.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZOtWtyoy5V2y-fkqxjG3pioETRlWosSBlywkkK1TBOPQV3BAkAnZtztT7Pt9_a14z93TnQZnOfxYXmbMLTZgtZeXSJ6yggrqe1EalX3R2vjqXpZ1M_ZGCu7Lw48hn65EGcPT7FTwz687b/s1600/over-harbor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="127" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZOtWtyoy5V2y-fkqxjG3pioETRlWosSBlywkkK1TBOPQV3BAkAnZtztT7Pt9_a14z93TnQZnOfxYXmbMLTZgtZeXSJ6yggrqe1EalX3R2vjqXpZ1M_ZGCu7Lw48hn65EGcPT7FTwz687b/s200/over-harbor.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The plot is awesome but I had problems with the main characters at first. I’m sure I would have liked them immediately if I had read this when I was younger though. They’re normal children but with their imaginations and silly sibling squabbles, they were a little boring but once I got in the proper mindset and got to know them is when I really started enjoying the story. The boys seemed better written than Jane did at times though. Susan Cooper has said that she wishes she had spent more time developing their characters in this book, even calling them “corny kid’s book characters” but supposedly they all become more developed throughout the course of the series. That the Drew children’s ages are never mentioned is something I did notice in this book. Though they seem young and Simon is the eldest by eleven months from Jane, which makes Barnabas (Barney) the youngest. None of them seem over the age of 12 though. The time period isn’t specifically stated either but if I had to guess I would say 1920’s to maybe the 1930’s though it could honestly be earlier than that but not by too much since there are cars.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3gmrjVy6oSlP5hzFHO9SvLKM21LT9dqIXNF06YUurUX680uPrbg2BbLOuQLkD2ojmAphkd3PYxdaQTxrM27KHONdFA0UbyuFb0RwjN0bAw9RhL-ZhxW7HGPUo8zb8L7o2AYxNGtpc4DLu/s1600/Over-stone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3gmrjVy6oSlP5hzFHO9SvLKM21LT9dqIXNF06YUurUX680uPrbg2BbLOuQLkD2ojmAphkd3PYxdaQTxrM27KHONdFA0UbyuFb0RwjN0bAw9RhL-ZhxW7HGPUo8zb8L7o2AYxNGtpc4DLu/s200/Over-stone.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
What I found frustrating that we don’t really know the enemy’s motive (and goodness! Just about everyone seems bad) but the author has Simon explain in a way: “Well”-- Simon wrinkled his forehead, trying to remember what Great-Uncle Merry had said on the first day-- “it’s the grail they want, isn’t it? Because it stands for something, somehow. And that’s why Gumerry wants to find it as well. It’s like two armies fighting in history. You’re never quite sure what they’re actually fighting about, but only that one wants to beat the other.” The author said, “The struggle between the Light and the Dark in my books has more to do with the fact that when I was four World War II broke out. England was very nearly invaded by Germany, and that threat, reinforced by the experience of having people drop bombs on your head, led to a very strong sense of Us and Them. Of course Us is always the good, and Them is always the bad.”<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSO2oRHYWKMvoxvQ1zyPpwQg1eCXUIVd3Uzoq3QFkGCUV0xc4GhBgW4UnrxTULkCdKZFHOj8j8yiH5a5H_2CwOG7MyBHSDrY-JuFGCa1zD74ITkB4xrijKU0sjjJnUeRBs4ApYDLPr9X1u/s1600/over-cave.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSO2oRHYWKMvoxvQ1zyPpwQg1eCXUIVd3Uzoq3QFkGCUV0xc4GhBgW4UnrxTULkCdKZFHOj8j8yiH5a5H_2CwOG7MyBHSDrY-JuFGCa1zD74ITkB4xrijKU0sjjJnUeRBs4ApYDLPr9X1u/s200/over-cave.jpg" width="200" /></a>When I started reading this I had no idea of what to expect because I hadn’t read this when I was younger nor did I see the film adaptation of the second book that came out recently. I remember the previews looked interesting though. I was pleasantly surprised with Over Sea, Under Stone and while it did at times bring to mind the feel of <i><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/12/narnia-place-beyond-imagination.html">The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe</a></i> and the kids strongly reminded me of Disney’s adaptation of <i><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/12/magically-enchanting.html">Bedknobs and Broomsticks</a></i>, it was incredibly unique. This story does start off incredibly slow but I really liked the ending. However, I do see why some people skip this book in the series and go on to the sequel, including Hollywood with their 2007 release <i>The Dark is Rising: The Seeker.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><b>Although he was not her real uncle, but only a friend of her father, he had been close to the family for so many years that it never occurred to them to wonder where he had come from in the first place.</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>Nobody knew very much about Great-Uncle Merry, and nobody ever quite dared to ask. He did not look in the least like his name. He was tall, and straight, with a lot of very thick, wild, white hair. In his grim brown face the nose curved fiercely, like a bent bow, and the eyes were deep-set and dark.</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>How old he was, nobody knew. “Old as the hills,” Father said, and they felt, deep down, that this was probably right. There was something about Great-Uncle Merry that was like the hills, or the sea, or the sky; something ancient, but without age or end.</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>Ever since he had learned to read, Barney’s greatest heroes had been King Arthur and his knights. In his dreams he fought imaginary battles as a member of the Round Table, rescuing fair ladies and slaying false knights. He had been longing to come to the West Country; it gave him a strange feeling that he would in some way be coming home.</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>“You can search and search, on a quest, and in the end you may never get there at all.”</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>“Oh honestly, Jane,” Simon said. “You can’t find a treasure map and just say, ‘Oh, how nice,’ and put it back again. And that’s what they’d make us do.” </b><b>“Oh well,” Jane said doubtfully, “I suppose you’re right. We can always put it back afterwards.”</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>“You remember the fairy stories you were told when you were very small-- ‘once upon a time…’ Why do you think they always began like that?”</b> <b>“Because they weren’t true.” Simon said promptly. </b><b>Jane said, caught up in the unreality of the high remote place, “Because perhaps they were true once, but nobody could remember when.” </b><b>Great-Uncle Merry turned his head and smiled at her. “That’s right. Once upon a time… a long time ago… things that happened once, perhaps, but have been talked about for so long that nobody really knows. And underneath all the bits that people have added, the magic swords and lamps, they’re all about one thing-- the good hero fighting the giant, or the witch, or the wicked uncle. Good against bad. Good against evil.”</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>“This is your quest,” he said. “You must find the way every time yourselves. I am the guardian, no more. I can take no part and give you no help, beyond guarding you all the way.”</b></blockquote><blockquote><b>Straight as an arrow the long white road of the moon’s reflection stretched towards them across the surface of the sea, like a path from the past and a path to the future; at its edges it danced and glimmered as the waves rose beneath the wind.</b></blockquote><br />
<u>Dark Is Rising</u><br />
1. Over Sea, Under Stone (1965)<br />
2. The Dark Is Rising (1973)<br />
3. Greenwitch (1974)<br />
4. The Grey King (1975)<br />
5. Silver on the Tree (1977)<br />
<br />
<b>First Paragraph:</b> "Where is he?"<br />
Barney hopped from one foot to the other as he clambered down from the train, peering in vain through the white-faced crowds flooding eagerly to the St. Austell ticket barrier. "Oh, I can't see him. Is he there?"<br />
<br />
<b>Links</b><br />
<a href="http://www.thelostland.com/">The Lost Land-</a> Official<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Over_Sea,_Under_Stone">Book Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_Cooper">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dark_Is_Rising">Series Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://darkisrising.wikia.com/wiki/Dark_is_Rising_Wiki">The Dark is Rising Wiki</a><br />
<br />
<b>Interviews</b><br />
With <a href="http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/intrvws/cooper.htm">Raymond H. Thompson</a>- 1989<br />
<br />
Source: Library loan, paperback<br />
<br />
<u>Related Reviews</u><br />
<b>Arthurian</b><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/09/magical-time-in-merry-old-england.html">The Sword in the Stone</a> (1963)<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b><i>Picture Explanations</i></b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">All are locations in the book</span></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-48533773544974647822010-09-11T00:05:00.003-05:002012-03-26T12:46:25.595-05:00A Struggle of Good vs. Evil<blockquote>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIpEQ1iI64IlQh_X6JqpJTKmjiW-zibDuMPEkjABAyX3cIAyw5v-L3Qqrhhco1-hVpAyRdfrDkWzdXLRL4xY_qqOnKTV8BQLQozBgobPFDm0aj-rCzTJRaK2i5weEidAr9G1i1u7QdbGv8/s1600/Hideaway-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIpEQ1iI64IlQh_X6JqpJTKmjiW-zibDuMPEkjABAyX3cIAyw5v-L3Qqrhhco1-hVpAyRdfrDkWzdXLRL4xY_qqOnKTV8BQLQozBgobPFDm0aj-rCzTJRaK2i5weEidAr9G1i1u7QdbGv8/s320/Hideaway-main.jpg" width="198" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>In his most profoundly felt-- and terrifying-- novel yet, Dean Koontz compels us to explore the meaning of death, the nature of sociopathic evil, and the transcendent power of love. Hideaway has the breathless pace, suspense, lyrical prose, deeply drawn characters, and surprises that readers have come to expect in a Koontz novel -- yet it is entirely fresh, breaking new ground for the author and taking the reader into the beating heart of darkness.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>Although accident victim Hatch Harrison dies en route to the hospital, a brilliant physician miraculously resuscitates him. Given this second chance, Hatch and his wife, Lindsey approach each day with a new appreciation for the beauty of life -- until a series of mysterious and frightening events brings them face to face with the unknown. Although Hatch was given no glimpse of an Afterlife during the period when his heart was stopped, he has reason to fear that he has brought a terrible Presence back with him from the land of the dead.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>When people who have wronged the Harrisons begin to die violently, Hatch comes to doubt his own innocence -- and must confront the possibility that this life is just a prelude to another, darker place. He and Lindsey are forced to fight not only for their own survival but for that of Regina, the delightful and exceptional disabled child who has given meaning and purpose to their lives. With growing desperation, Lindsey and Hatch seek the truth along a twisted trail that leads eventually to an abandoned amusement park -- and a confrontation with purest evil.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>Emotionally affecting and powerfully suspenseful, Hideaway may be Dean Koontz's finest work to date.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
</blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px;"><b>Title:</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px;"> Hideaway</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Author: </b><a href="http://www.deankoontz.com/">Dean R. Koontz</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Start & Finished:</b> 8/13/10- 8/17/10<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Published:</b> February 6, 1992<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Publisher</b>: Berkley (Penguin)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Pages:</b> 400 (paperback)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Genre:</b> Horror<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Y3LobBTc_hXyx6XzUYX0U9OQqLJQEthvt00cbJhnjb-OpommXXAoH6bc21xjqBIzK_uRAO9bpAIYcsawf3vLYD6nFfnleF14N5Te6DnkWLDPQWZMHpvjRPl4kJJqr0P7lXbFv3kGqNr1/s1600/Hideaway-defibrillation+machine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Y3LobBTc_hXyx6XzUYX0U9OQqLJQEthvt00cbJhnjb-OpommXXAoH6bc21xjqBIzK_uRAO9bpAIYcsawf3vLYD6nFfnleF14N5Te6DnkWLDPQWZMHpvjRPl4kJJqr0P7lXbFv3kGqNr1/s200/Hideaway-defibrillation+machine.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">“Expect no miracles. The dead stay dead, and the living only wait to join them,” may have been Lindsey Harrison’s motto at first but after an accident in which her husband Hatch dies for 80 minutes and is brought back to life, she starts singing a different tune. However, she and Hatch soon learn that you can’t come back from death without some consequences in Dean R. Koontz’s Bram Stoker award nominee <i>Hideaway</i>. About this book Koontz says, “evil can be traced to three sources: human behavior; the transmittal of sociopathic behavior through damaged genes, which is the most terrifying because it is the most arbitrary and relentless; and possible to Evil as a supernatural force… Nothing in the book prevents the reader from embracing either the totally supernatural or the more logical interpretation of events… The way you interpret it at first pass may tell you something about your own subconscious attitudes.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi73POMeic0747XlYHqlCILx3BADykHfBtslf7zmInJU-S2G81q0PVSn7i0MNnotbyyVqP3p7Nzg2WfZLd1VO2BpTukoTzeGYpGjydW4uQ4XPbEF7xoGfihi6wPjxYogCLHd-1lahAMvXTw/s1600/Hideaway-park.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi73POMeic0747XlYHqlCILx3BADykHfBtslf7zmInJU-S2G81q0PVSn7i0MNnotbyyVqP3p7Nzg2WfZLd1VO2BpTukoTzeGYpGjydW4uQ4XPbEF7xoGfihi6wPjxYogCLHd-1lahAMvXTw/s200/Hideaway-park.jpg" width="129" /></a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Mr. Koontz said that the idea for <i>Hideaway</i> came to him about year after he had “read about the latest developments in resuscitation medicine.” It was an article about a child who had been technically dead for 66 minutes and came back without brain damage (it’s briefly mentioned in <i>Hideaway</i> actually, which made me wonder what happened to those people who were resuscitated before Hatch and if they had similar experiences as he did). Koontz said that if he “hadn’t read that piece, the idea [for this book] would never have occurred to [him].” The author did do his research and it really shows in the book, though I couldn’t pronounce half of the stuff they talked about. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">The killer in the book Vassago was incredibly creepy and obviously demented and the Harrisons were good people but it was little Regina the crippled orphan who made the book. I found her very amusing and she stole all the scenes she was in, plus I also liked the lightness she brought to the story. On his website, Mr. Koontz said, “Although she isn’t the female lead, a young disabled girl named Regina is the heart of <i>Hideaway</i> both in terms of plot and thematic structure. She is a symbol of innocence, of purity. The antagonist, Vassago, is actually Evil personified, and like most evil with a small e and like all Evil with a capital E, he is motivated more powerfully by the desire to destroy innocence and pollute purity than he is by anything else. In a structural sense, therefore, Regina is the sun, while all the other characters are planets revolving around her. Without Regina–ten years old, disabled, charming, acerbic, funny, indomitable–the story doesn’t just collapse: it evaporates.” Because Koontz liked Regina so much and didn’t want to write a sequel to <i>Hideaway</i>, “a version of her later surfaced as Leilani in <i>One Door Away from Heaven</i>. They share the same physical disabilities and the same level of intelligence, but they really are not otherwise alike. Regina is absolute innocence, quick on the uptake but fundamentally naive."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3TYh2-d5WfkIjPOg21cPBaDhYLgMIetB68p5tJyLmt6HHA9UaB7rph4JrpBrf2yr5LvRAcKzR_VNZfn_KMFedA_cFdaTPwJ6n6HRikwaFn-yFuH4OIlyBp9fNT49JUyVHnFiCAwOxXVXh/s1600/hideaway-nuns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3TYh2-d5WfkIjPOg21cPBaDhYLgMIetB68p5tJyLmt6HHA9UaB7rph4JrpBrf2yr5LvRAcKzR_VNZfn_KMFedA_cFdaTPwJ6n6HRikwaFn-yFuH4OIlyBp9fNT49JUyVHnFiCAwOxXVXh/s200/hideaway-nuns.jpg" width="171" /></a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">It’s interesting to see a serial killer’s thoughts on, and love of, death directly after a doctor had just explained his hatred for it. Especially later on when we see how these two characters relate to one another, which I won’t spoil for you but it’s one of the main themes throughout the book. Another thing I thought was interesting is the similarity between these two characters: Doctor Nyeborn has his collection of religious art and Vassago has his macabre sculpture collection of his victims. <i>Hideaway</i> was made into a <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113303/">movie in 1995</a> which stars Jeff Goldblum and Alicia Silverstone that I have not, and will not see. Dean Koontz was not happy with the film after the first screenplay he had approved had been thrown out and even offered to repay all of the money the studio had given him to have his name removed from as much of the film as he could (they only minimized the use of his name in promotion). He did write several letters to Tri-Star including one in which he said the “script has a viewpoint that is the antithesis of everything my work stands for and is offensive when it is not simply boring.” He now keeps creative control over all film adaptations of his books.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigRX1XF25v9sOlZtbHf_4oIxI3WypZjlhYHEMKkXzKKij4zu7W-bFedvF1JUZE33xEMmUk8pXr6qesKfXEk4bKe272zQ3YxkoCuVCGhyphenhypheneKM97hnaL24IddeAz7sIzoITYdpPrLl2V6YVSv/s1600/Hideaway-paint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigRX1XF25v9sOlZtbHf_4oIxI3WypZjlhYHEMKkXzKKij4zu7W-bFedvF1JUZE33xEMmUk8pXr6qesKfXEk4bKe272zQ3YxkoCuVCGhyphenhypheneKM97hnaL24IddeAz7sIzoITYdpPrLl2V6YVSv/s200/Hideaway-paint.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>Hideaway</i> has an interesting premise, good characters, and yet still something was off about it. I’ve read a few Dean Koontz books but nothing has ever really stuck with me, matter of fact the first one I read I absolutely loathed. I think my problem with Koontz’s books is that his bad guys have equaled, if not more “screen time” as the protagonists. You really get to get into their heads and it’s a really scary place to go. By direct contrast, all the other main characters are extremely nice, pleasant people and I think it’s too extreme of a contradiction. There’s no doubt that Dean Koontz writes good characters but there was something about <i>Hideaway</i> that I didn’t particularly enjoy and I really struggled to finish it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div>
</div>
<blockquote>
<b>The death of a five-year-old son had incalculable emotional weight. It pressed on the mind, quickly deflating every moment of buoyancy, crushing each new blossom of joy. Jimmy had been dead for more than four and a half years, nearly as long as he had lived, yet his death weighed as heavily on them now as on the day they had lost him, like some colossal moon looming in a low orbit overhead.</b></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<b>In response the glare of the car headlights, the trucker looked through his side window. Across the rapidly closing gap of night and snow, Lindsey saw nothing of the man’s face but a pallid oval and twin cherry holes where the eyes should have been, a ghostly countenance, as if some malign spirit was at the wheel of that vehicle. Or Death himself.</b></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<b>It was a battle. Death was the adversary: clever, mighty, and relentless. To Jonas, death was not just a pathological state, not merely the inevitable fate of all living things, but actually an entity that walked the world, perhaps not always the robed figure of myth with its skeletal face hidden in the shadows of a cowl, but a very real presence nonetheless, Death with a capital D.</b></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<b>Vassago had arranged each piece in his macabre collection with more than casual contemplation. They were not simply ten corpses dumped unceremoniously on the concrete. He not only respected death but loved it with an ardor akin to Beethoven’s passion for music or Rembrandt’s fervent devotion to art. Death, after all, was the gift that Satan had brought to the inhabitants of the Garden, a gift disguised as something prettier; he was the Giver of Death, and his was the kingdom of death everlasting. Any flesh that death had touched was to be regarded with all the reverence that a devout Catholic might reserve for the Eucharist. Just as their god was said to live within that thin wafer of unleavened bread, so the face of Vassago’s unforgiving god could be seen everywhere in the patterns of decay and dissolution.</b></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<b>“I apologize for having been so rough with you, sir, but you really didn’t give me much of a choice.” Nothing in the voice indicated that the kid was being snide or mocking. He was just a boy who had been raised to address his elders with consideration and respect, a habit he could not cast off even under circumstances such as these. The detective was gripped by a primitive, superstitious feeling that he was in the presence of an entity that could imitate humanity but had nothing whatsoever in common with the human species.</b></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<b>“Sometimes,” he said, “I see through this guy’s eyes when I’m sleeping, and now sometimes I can even feel him out there when I’m awake, and it’s like the psychic crap in movies, yeah. But I also feel this… this bond with him that I really can’t explain or describe to you, no matter how much you prod me about it.”</b></blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px;"><b>First Paragraph</b>: An entire world hummed and bustled beyond the dark ramparts of the mountains, yet to Lindsey Harrison the night seemed empty, as hollow as the vacant chambers of a cold, dead heart. Shivering, she slumped deeper in the passenger seat of the Honda.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>Find Dean Koontz Online</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://deankoontz.com/">Official Site</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dean-Koontz/73471584706">Facebook</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Links:</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.deankoontz.com/hideaway-from-the-author/">From the Author-Hideaway</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.dkoontz.com/fanclub/indexd.htm">Dean Koontz Fan Club</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hideaway_(novel)">Book Wikipedia</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_Koontz">Author Wikipedia</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://ladytinksblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/cover-contemplation.html">A Cover Contemplation</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Source: Borrowed from my mother-in-law, paperback.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Note: <a href="http://www.katherineramsland.com/">Kathrine Ramsland</a>’s biography on Dean Koontz was a big help with writing this review.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px;"><u>Related Review</u></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/creepy-koontz-story.html">The Good Guy</a> by Dean Koontz (2007)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Picture Explanations</span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Defibrillator Machine:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Hatch is dead of 80 minutes before he’s brought back<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Abandoned Amusement Park:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Vissago lives in an abandoned amusement park<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Religious Art:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Doctor Nyeborn collects these and when he gets the complete collection, donates them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Nuns:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Regina is adopted from a Catholic orphanage<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size: medium;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Canvas</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">: Lindsey is an artist</span></span></div>
</div>
</div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-16446008181967341102010-09-01T17:28:00.010-05:002011-02-13T23:55:15.796-06:00Something to Dream About<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIuisgeNigC-OcT2wtqh1THmedBfyrXiPOD_acGrSr_eBC7ZsvOMhIgLjP3FbkRzxZwTBid-6ewLpQGC84jgUWE_ymFmZ9x185BGf8UMSEK3B40fLIdTb5V1BPdSfv1JTNtBf573KuPHD/s1600/sleeping-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512078290037053410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIuisgeNigC-OcT2wtqh1THmedBfyrXiPOD_acGrSr_eBC7ZsvOMhIgLjP3FbkRzxZwTBid-6ewLpQGC84jgUWE_ymFmZ9x185BGf8UMSEK3B40fLIdTb5V1BPdSfv1JTNtBf573KuPHD/s320/sleeping-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 236px;" /></a><em>A spectacular achievement in the art of animation, Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty has awakened-- the dazzling beauty of this timeless animated masterpiece is now fully restored. Created in the Disney tradition of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Cinderella, the unforgettable story is a breathtaking tapestry of charming romance, majestic spectacle and electrifying adventure.<br />
<br />
Once upon a dream, the lovely Princess Aurora is gifted with grace and beauty-- but she provokes the jealousy of the wicked fairy Maleficent. A delightful trio of kindhearted Good Fairies do their best to protect their beloved Princess-- but even their magic is no match for the terrifying Mistress of All Evil, and Aurora falls into an enchanted slumber. The heroic Prince Phillip must brave many dangers-- and finally battle a ferocious fire-breathing dragon-- if he is to wake Princess Aurora from her eternal sleep!<br />
<br />
With a magical Academy Award- nominated score adapted from the immortal music of Tchaikovsky, Sleeping Beauty is a cherished classic for every family and one that they will enjoy again and again.</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Sleeping Beauty<br />
<strong>Release:</strong> January 29, 1959<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Animated- Family<br />
<strong>MPAA Rating:</strong> G<br />
<strong>Based On:</strong> La Belle au bois dormant by Charles Perrault<br />
<strong>Writer:</strong> Erdman Penner, Joe Rinaldi, Winston Hibler, Bill Peet, Ted Sears, Ralph Wright, & Milt Banta<br />
<strong>Director:</strong> Clyde Geronimi<br />
<strong>Music By:</strong> George Bruns, Tom Adair, Sammy Fain, & Jack Lawrence<br />
<strong>Produced By:</strong> Walt Disney<br />
<strong>Distributed By:</strong> Buena Vista Distribution<br />
<strong>Run Time:</strong> 75 minutes<br />
<strong><a href="http://disney.go.com/disneyvideos/animatedfilms/sleepingbeauty/">Official Site</a></strong><br />
<br />
According to Walt Disney on one of his Wonderful World of Color <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjluWAGKXjpaQGJIiCINUowhF4-QpqvwZB-XpXRsmmH_bVa4Z3_7Ut19XlWimhbOYZaGaQIfj1HclRUdqjKx6lWChogJaicXmcXNTDFl58FmJDP0b5x9UjiKs-wIBoC1PqoOPa50HbbZEUR/s1600/Sleeping-book.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512079442319191922" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjluWAGKXjpaQGJIiCINUowhF4-QpqvwZB-XpXRsmmH_bVa4Z3_7Ut19XlWimhbOYZaGaQIfj1HclRUdqjKx6lWChogJaicXmcXNTDFl58FmJDP0b5x9UjiKs-wIBoC1PqoOPa50HbbZEUR/s200/Sleeping-book.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 124px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>episodes, <em>Sleeping Beauty</em> “took six years [not including story development], and six million dollars to make.” It was the last hand-inked Disney animated feature film, the first of the animated films to stop having Walt Disney’s personal touch because of all the other projects he was involved in (Disneyland, the TV show, and his live-action movies), and it’s the most beautiful, decorative, sophisticated, and intricately Disney movie ever made and though the most expensive, it was still wildly successful at the box office, yet it still didn’t make back as much as went into it.<br />
<br />
This is such a beautiful film, more like a medieval painting, tapestry (which is the inspiration actually), or book artwork that’s fantastically rendered for the first in technorama 70 which is really, really wide- screened. The animators of the film made sketches based on medieval tapestries to get the look of the film and it was because of this that everything in<em> Sleeping Beauty</em> is in focus from every leaf to lines in clothing from characters in the background. The Disney studio had n<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4IKgDhBG-6cGkhfBXeW-HQwLGO-4oDHxEDaCsQ5Xb8CU7tZw63brhTqR7MIn0xkPbs_myg-ZGCsnZlFZv2CP-9qtblokUC7QqKB0c0v1mLq9BjDS6zQUyXP6QuygPunJTJLBuoW3RZqoG/s1600/sleeping-fairies.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512079661922403330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4IKgDhBG-6cGkhfBXeW-HQwLGO-4oDHxEDaCsQ5Xb8CU7tZw63brhTqR7MIn0xkPbs_myg-ZGCsnZlFZv2CP-9qtblokUC7QqKB0c0v1mLq9BjDS6zQUyXP6QuygPunJTJLBuoW3RZqoG/s200/sleeping-fairies.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 99px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 223px;" /></a>ever done a film like this before, especially after the invention of the multi-plane camera, which lets the backgrounds fade out of focus while still giving the illusion of depth. This sharp focus is what I loved about this particular film as a child; the forest scenes in particular captured my imagination. To be honest, the backgrounds outstage the characters and the story.<br />
<br />
Two of the best of Disney’s animators who are also part of the famed 9 Old Men, Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas animated the comic relief in this film, the three Good Fairies which happen to be my favorite characters in the film. It isn’t all that surprising considering they are my favorite Disney animators! It was Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather that are the heart of this picture and the reason I enjoyed it as a child. Well, them and Prince Phillip (voiced by Bill Shirley) and his horse Samson- he’<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpVNqvuhCW8PngUqDVt3gb310nvNPgvrKWNrLS-zZzGvEMivS1BVg-R-5KJgGO9ZOICNd51h6LSRw8nRjkqrgmE_l9P2vuexQhxqO_BcWQDrbE4UYYSGl82LCViiisg7xuM_YJXx8_Dp4/s1600/sleeping-maleficent.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512079994498060850" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpVNqvuhCW8PngUqDVt3gb310nvNPgvrKWNrLS-zZzGvEMivS1BVg-R-5KJgGO9ZOICNd51h6LSRw8nRjkqrgmE_l9P2vuexQhxqO_BcWQDrbE4UYYSGl82LCViiisg7xuM_YJXx8_Dp4/s200/sleeping-maleficent.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 86px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>s the only Prince in Disney history I ever truly liked! Maleficent on the other hand, used to terrify me and I think she’s the very best Disney villainess followed closely behind by Lady Tremain the Wicked Stepmother from <em>Cinderella</em>. Funnily enough, they’re both voiced by the same woman, Eleanor Audrey which I didn’t find out until I was much older. She originally turned this role down because she was fighting tuberculosis at the time but thankfully, she went ahead with it because no one else could have given Maleficent the presence and cold menace that is that character without making it seem too much.<br />
<br />
Quite a few elements found in <em>Sleeping Beauty</em> were previously used in <em>Snow White</em> and <em>Cinderella</em> bu<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqSHycFF0sWc383Hixrs3jXM-qrGjWW9gLLxUFqi6sQiTpwK-ZlorgVwsQiV8-1pZqljcLNzxBOK_GgYnnMkVa1ad_iyZZ5tuacMVfitguPgcECRSCu837xXcgVc58QpUngHKw99qXYprb/s1600/Sleeping-Briar+Rose.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512080320058047250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqSHycFF0sWc383Hixrs3jXM-qrGjWW9gLLxUFqi6sQiTpwK-ZlorgVwsQiV8-1pZqljcLNzxBOK_GgYnnMkVa1ad_iyZZ5tuacMVfitguPgcECRSCu837xXcgVc58QpUngHKw99qXYprb/s200/Sleeping-Briar+Rose.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 90px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>t somehow despite similarities, this manages to be a completely unique picture with its one-of-a-kind characters. Aurora/ Briar Rose has always been my favorite princess from Walt Disney’s era (During my childhood was when the great Disney princesses came out though: Belle, Ariel, Jasmine, etc).because she’s gorgeous, charming, sophisticated, thanks to her animator Marc Davis (who also did Maleficent) and has a beautiful voice thanks to opera singer Mary Costa. However, I’ve always felt like the rest of the movie just moves around her even if she’s what the entire movie is about. Matter of fact, I believe she’s on-screen less than any other character! When asked what kind of personal connection she had to the film, Mary Costa (Aurora/ Briar Rose) said, "For me, <em>Sleeping Beauty</em> is like a beautiful glass time capsule where the joyest part of my you<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8rnADmFEcPN9d4qpKWbny5jGJwjChO6g2O97xViocNtkteoGVmgNJpavFunFwFouoNewCS8sLRmYK2kXKh8NkcZZQJW24qwhYTHOL_K2NSaFG4EJMEN2UiD-1_WhiotP8EM0ZdOfDk7K/s1600/sleeping-prince.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512080518543960050" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8rnADmFEcPN9d4qpKWbny5jGJwjChO6g2O97xViocNtkteoGVmgNJpavFunFwFouoNewCS8sLRmYK2kXKh8NkcZZQJW24qwhYTHOL_K2NSaFG4EJMEN2UiD-1_WhiotP8EM0ZdOfDk7K/s200/sleeping-prince.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 78px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>th has been kept preserved and eternally sealed. I’ve always felt that it was just a blessing. It was such an honor for me to do that," Ms. Costa, we're the ones who are blessed. No one could have done her voice better.<br />
<br />
Tchaikovsky’s music and George Bruns interpretation of it helped tell Disney’s version of the charming fairytale, (filmed in “Technorama 70” for its theatrical release) b<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAsZWt0yHMksvAprWIJ_-IgXFqBV2Kk6m3k8EQKYnIMe4T3Jp5dZRKZVrLBcd-rUKA8J_TXAVBvOf8R-8GhDBgkpztO80dDh71wH5m3_mb-klKKiYXbB-XeaUIrYBd-ges0ROASUmyVXJn/s1600/sleeping-sleeping.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512080813000322690" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAsZWt0yHMksvAprWIJ_-IgXFqBV2Kk6m3k8EQKYnIMe4T3Jp5dZRKZVrLBcd-rUKA8J_TXAVBvOf8R-8GhDBgkpztO80dDh71wH5m3_mb-klKKiYXbB-XeaUIrYBd-ges0ROASUmyVXJn/s200/sleeping-sleeping.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 150px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>ut more than any other film, <em>Sleeping Beauty</em> looks and sounds like it could be part of Fantasia because the music is hauntingly beautiful. The soundtrack was even nominated for an Oscar and a Grammy! However, the actual animation is so finely detailed that no other Disney film can match it. This is in part thanks to the vision of Eyvind Earle an animator at the studio who was put in charge of the look of the entire film- everything from the backgrounds (which he painted a good bit of himself) to the style. He even had some input on the characters which didn’t go over too well with the animators. When it’s all said and done though, <em>Sleeping Beauty</em> is wonderful because of his and many other people’s contributions. It was the end of an era and it went out with a bang.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>Merryweather: I'd like to turn her into a fat ol' hop toad.<br />
Fauna: Now, dear, that isn't a very nice thing to say…<br />
Flora: Besides, we can't. You know our magic doesn't work that way.<br />
Fauna: It can only do good, dear. To bring joy and happiness.<br />
Merryweather: Well, <i>that</i> would make me happy.<br />
<br />
Merryweather: It looks awful.<br />
Flora: That's because it's on you, dear.<br />
<br />
Prince Phillip: But when will I see you again?<br />
Briar Rose: Oh never, never!<br />
Prince Phillip: Never?<br />
Briar Rose: Well, maybe someday.<br />
Prince Phillip: When? Tomorrow?<br />
Briar Rose: Oh no, this evening!<br />
Prince Phillip: Where?<br />
Briar Rose: At the cottage... in the glen.</strong></blockquote><br />
<u>Featured Songs</u><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdkVj03VNE0">Hail to the Princess Aurora</a><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4Zbl2WTXjc">One Gift</a><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLn9IMNPxG4">I Wonder</a><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEAka4Dilio">Once Upon a Dream</a><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HspdHXhDUY">The Skumps Song</a><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3brxHP9-Z0">Sleeping Beauty</a><br />
<br />
<em>Find Sleeping Beauty Online</em><br />
<a href="http://disney.go.com/disneyvideos/animatedfilms/sleepingbeauty/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053285/">Imdb.com </a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleeping_Beauty_(1959_film)">Wikipedia</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Links:<br />
</strong><a href="http://www.coveringthemouse.com/search/label/sleeping%20beauty">Covering the Mouse</a>- cover songs<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleeping_Beauty">Fairy Tale Sleeping Beauty Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.balletmet.org/Notes/Sleeping.html">Notes for Sleeping Beauty Ballet</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Interviews</strong><br />
<a href="http://animatedviews.com/2008/once-upon-a-dream-mary-costa-as-sleeping-beautys-princess-aurora/">Mary Costa</a>, the voice of Sleeping Beauty<br />
<a href="http://animatedviews.com/2008/once-upon-a-dream-burny-mattinson-on-sleeping-beautys-maleficent/">Burny Mattinson</a>, an assistant animator under Marc Davis<br />
<a href="http://www.ultimatedisney.com/sleepingbeauty-interview.html">Mary Costa</a> with Ultimate Disney<br />
<br />
Trailer:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1GXf97HU1i4?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1GXf97HU1i4?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
1997 Making of Sleeping Beauty pt1:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/QDtUISbMKgI?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/QDtUISbMKgI?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Briar Rose/Aurora Model:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/nj3hLSP1vFo?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/nj3hLSP1vFo?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Mary Costa Interview:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ArrS1G1HifA?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ArrS1G1HifA?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<u>Related Reviews</u><br />
<strong>Verna Felton-Flora</strong><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/jungle-is-jumpin.html">The Jungle Book</a> (1967)- Winifred (the elephant)<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/11/it-wonderful-in-wonderland.html">Alice in Wonderland</a> (1951)- Queen of Hearts<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/classic-fairy-tale-love-story.html">Cinderella</a> (1950)- Fairy Godmother<br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/07/onethe-only-dumbo.html">Dumbo</a> (1941)- The Elephant Matriarch / Mrs. Jumbo<br />
<strong>Bill Shirley- Prince Phillip</strong><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/07/loverly-oscar-winning-work-of-art.html">My Fair Lady </a>(1964)- Freddy Eynsford Hill (singing voice)<br />
<strong>Eleanor Audley- Maleficent<br />
</strong><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/classic-fairy-tale-love-story.html">Cinderella</a> (1950)- Lady Tremaine, Evil Step-mother<br />
<strong>Barbara Luddy- Merryweather<br />
</strong><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/02/beginning-of-pooh-disney-career.html">The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh</a> (1977)- Kanga<br />
<strong>Barbara Jo Allen- Fauna<br />
</strong><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/09/magical-time-in-merry-old-england.html">The Sword in the Stone</a> (1963)- Scullery Maid<br />
<strong>Bill Thompson- Hubert</strong><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/11/it-wonderful-in-wonderland.html">Alice in Wonderland</a> (1951)-White Rabbit / DodoLadytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-75578010512505934032010-08-29T13:45:00.008-05:002011-02-14T00:00:29.384-06:00The Richest Men in World are in Trouble<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP91SpzXWFZ4R5br25-Da9M9bpJ0SjGgJjLSFkhQiZu_kTenMBSVPt7cYmdU8Imha_kyz_YzrgPw9LiqsiLeQllYnYy6poUpaZV2zL-DI7RxRY2jMYg-VlvZ5_KdtFtjghFU6QcXFw3_ve/s1600/Triple-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510906755079174002" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP91SpzXWFZ4R5br25-Da9M9bpJ0SjGgJjLSFkhQiZu_kTenMBSVPt7cYmdU8Imha_kyz_YzrgPw9LiqsiLeQllYnYy6poUpaZV2zL-DI7RxRY2jMYg-VlvZ5_KdtFtjghFU6QcXFw3_ve/s320/Triple-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 210px;" /></a><em>The Jefferson Club is a remote private resort for the super-rich. The buildings, the amenities, and the security are state of the art and beyond compare. Many of the world’s wealthiest people-- business leaders, entrepreneurs, politicians, celebrities-- gather for the most exclusive New Year’s Eve party in the world. As the expensive champagne flows and multibillion dollar deals are arranged, the unimaginable happens-- a highly trained, heavily armed paramilitary force calling itself the Third Position Army breaches the world’s best security system and takes everybody hostage.<br />
<br />
“Mickey” Hennessey, former U.S. Special Agent, is the head of security for the Jefferson Club. A divorced father of three teenagers, he’s spending the holiday with his kids. When the club is attacked, his entire team is wiped out and only he makes it out of the club alive. Now he’s outside while his kids are trapped inside, hostages of the Third Position Army, who are putting seven of the ten richest men on “trial” for their crimes against humanity, live on the internet for the world to see. While a top FBI rescue team works feverishly to rescue all the hostages, Hennessey is determined to do all he can to overcome every obstacle and to ensure his children’s safety-- or die trying</em>.</blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Triple Cross<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://www.marktsullivan.com/">Mark T. Sullivan</a><br />
<strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 8/3/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> April 14, 2009<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> St. Martin’s Press<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 390<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Thriller- Political<br />
<br />
Mark T. Sullivan is an avid skier and lives in the skiing region of Montana, his book Triple <em>Cross</em> was inspired by an ultra-private s<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirrHBYFM_bjI2OzQbWZpn9GxukTDTs-GM9spEwqRf3R7hKeXCRaFYREEdmAVvdd3pU7gKyHgQY1Xh3e1Hd3mIc1_FzIKi7h2C1eLjqNpgzU3sRNC2MiR58hSFWG2WDR-5OWc_sTAIChqy5/s1600/Triple-skiing.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510906917207706498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirrHBYFM_bjI2OzQbWZpn9GxukTDTs-GM9spEwqRf3R7hKeXCRaFYREEdmAVvdd3pU7gKyHgQY1Xh3e1Hd3mIc1_FzIKi7h2C1eLjqNpgzU3sRNC2MiR58hSFWG2WDR-5OWc_sTAIChqy5/s200/Triple-skiing.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 113px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>kiing vacation place near his home that is for the rich, powerful, and famous. Also, the "shady activity going on in the U.S. financial markets” had an impact on this story because if there was "an attack on such a club stocked with some of the world’s wealthiest people would undoubtedly have an immediate, harsh effect on the stock markets." The author also said that "the idea of a voice of the people came from "Network," one of [his] favorite films. The idea of putting the trials on the Internet seemed obvious. We have Judge Judy on TV, why not Judge Truth on the Internet? When [he] put the two together it seemed like a strong weapon that the Third Position Army could use to influence public opinion and the stock markets."<br />
<br />
There are some parallels between this book and things that have <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigqOVs4Fxe3zbI7yjfQ4wgArjYl9b64nI_5KqmidQcS7t5BlsooNdhtSWTF_J21SP3JUumoG8ORnXL3Yda7799ui-PMPzWjz4WqrJhryqkG7P2XIGhxrzwD5tnmA9V4ujuT6UZmBN8tGue/s1600/Triple-snowmobile.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510907129494670130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigqOVs4Fxe3zbI7yjfQ4wgArjYl9b64nI_5KqmidQcS7t5BlsooNdhtSWTF_J21SP3JUumoG8ORnXL3Yda7799ui-PMPzWjz4WqrJhryqkG7P2XIGhxrzwD5tnmA9V4ujuT6UZmBN8tGue/s200/Triple-snowmobile.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 91px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>happened in real life but oddly enough, Mr. Sullivan finished writing <em>Triple Cross</em> before the "Wall Street meltdown, eleven months before terrorists seized two luxury hotels in Mumbai, India, and twelve months before the Bernie Madoff investment scandal came to light." I know little of politics and even less of the stock-market so those parts were like another language to me. I did think it was unnecessary for the main character Hennessy, to keep going on about his own portfolio not being what he wants it to be. He just came off as bitter to me but politics and the stock market both are a major theme throughout the story.<br />
<br />
Mr. Sullivan was a political and later an investigative reporter and from that he’s met several interesting people and heard several things that normally don’t get reported so from both of these things, this book was helped along into being written. The author said that "The negative <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirJsoRV0rnHYEKUW_rjdgJVEo7bHiAmxtDj_olzuK38nPaDPCBXCTGCv2FlFwRQ9oAQj45dg7B30k0j7oVYJiydXmqxC_OlTcIHbTnopSVMHLJ29uynHz8_10L28EvIR3ZGsRLg07tyyZ/s1600/Triple-gavel.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510907304173424530" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirJsoRV0rnHYEKUW_rjdgJVEo7bHiAmxtDj_olzuK38nPaDPCBXCTGCv2FlFwRQ9oAQj45dg7B30k0j7oVYJiydXmqxC_OlTcIHbTnopSVMHLJ29uynHz8_10L28EvIR3ZGsRLg07tyyZ/s200/Triple-gavel.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>portraits of the men who are put on trial in the novel I’m sad to say were drawn from real events and trends in American business during the first eight years of this century. I’m even sadder to say that most of the illegal activity described in the novel pales in comparison to the scandals, swindles and market manipulations that have come to light after the 2008 stock market crash." Considering some of the crimes addressed in this book, that’s an incredibly scary thought!<br />
<br />
Though the dad in <em>Triple Cross</em> does play a significant part at the end, the heroes of this book and the ones that are constantly at risk are three teenage triplets. The best characters by far in this book are these triplets (Connor, Bridger, and Hailey, the two sons and one daughter of Hennessey) and if the author ever wants to write a young adult novel I heartily recommend that he use these characters. Technically however, the main character is supposed to be Mickey Hennessy who is a flawed, but overall good man. FBI special agent Cheyenne O’Neil wasn’t too bad a character either though even when she was narrating, I never got the feeling that we really knew her. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUhYagNSJOAVDJcyUBAFdQC-1cV3oaM8HJDKA-N1hQBDkxZ0AMPhLAROlJQw_Z1B7kBTBuLPVvnrJB8tc21MM_PiVxbz74JaLlcpJON25ojGZ1kRLaD7oOS5E5lBQppjArDMQFpkV_dNK2/s1600/triple-helicopter.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510907523473279794" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUhYagNSJOAVDJcyUBAFdQC-1cV3oaM8HJDKA-N1hQBDkxZ0AMPhLAROlJQw_Z1B7kBTBuLPVvnrJB8tc21MM_PiVxbz74JaLlcpJON25ojGZ1kRLaD7oOS5E5lBQppjArDMQFpkV_dNK2/s200/triple-helicopter.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 134px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
<br />
Corruption and second chances are the two main themes of <em>Triple Cross</em>, however, not many of the corrupt businessmen in the book are the ones who get second chances. I had no problems visualizing everything the author writes so I believe this would make a great movie (the reason I read it in the first place was it kind of reminded me of a <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/01/yippee-ki-yay.html"><em>Die Hard</em> </a>film), maybe even better than it would a book to be honest. This was a good book and while I was able to figure out the “major twist” at the end fairly easily, I still enjoyed <em>Triple Cross</em> but in my opinion, the triplets are what carried this story.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>Mouse gazed at the general as if he were some kind of prophet, saying, “It’s time to make them pay for the hell they’ve inflicted on people.”<br />
<br />
His wife’s fists clenched. “Don’t you have enough to do without adding to Guilio’s job? Why don’t you go jump off the mountain and parachute down or something?”<br />
Burns cocked his head toward the windows. “Kinda snowing and windy out, in case you hadn’t noticed, my sweet.”<br />
“Then go in your padded room and bang your head against the walls, because you are driving everyone here crazy. Especially me.”<br />
<br />
“Oscar-winning actresses are kinda out of my league.”<br />
“Don’t know until you try,” Burns said. “And the more times you try, the more times you win. Take a risk, make the big play. That’s always been my motto, Mickey. If you’re going to shoot, shoot for the moon. Why not? Someone’s gotta win. Someone’s gotta be the number one. And no one remembers the guy who comes in second or third.”<br />
<br />
“The Jefferson Club is a retreat from a busy world,” Burns went on. “A place for the accomplished to come and relax in luxury, yet rugged enough to challenge the most hard-core skier and alpinist.”<br />
<br />
“One hundred million dollars in return for your son’s life,” General Anarchy said. “Less than a single percentage point of your net worth. What do you say, Mr. Doore? Deal or no deal?”<br />
<br />
<em>“Those maniacs are hunting them. It’s all they’re talking about on the news shows. Our children and the hostages. Whether they’ll live or die.”</em><br />
“Don’t listen,” Hennessy said.<br />
<em>“How can’t I?”</em> she shrieked back. “<em>It’s everywhere! People are downloading the trial and the execution to their iPods and phones by the hundreds of thousands. They had one expert on just now who said that this might be the first global event to unfold primarily on the Internet. My babies are in the middle of it!”</em></strong></blockquote><br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> True winter hit around eleven a.m. that New Year's Eve. North winds slanted in, bearing temperatures in the low teens. Iron clouds followed, casting a pale and crystalline-gray glow across the west flank of the Jefferson Range in southwest Montana.<br />
<br />
<em>Find Mark T. Sullivan Online</em><br />
<a href="http://www.marktsullivan.com/content/index.asp">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.marktsullivan.com/blog/blog.asp">Author’s Blog</a> (last update 10/13/09)<br />
<br />
<strong>Links</strong><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_T._Sullivan">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.marktsullivan.com/content/triple_cross.asp?id=behind">Behind the Book<br />
</a>My <a href="http://ladytinksblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/cover-contemplation-triple-cross.html">Cover Contemplation</a> Post<br />
<strong>Interviews</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.bookreporter.com/authors/au-sullivan-mark.asp">Bookreporter</a><br />
<a href="http://www.book-club-queen.com/mark-sullivan.html">Book Club Queen </a><br />
<br />
Source: Personal collection, courtesy of <a href="http://www.mediamuscle.com/mmwho.cfm">MediaMuscle</a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations</em></strong><br />
<strong>Skiing:</strong> The Jefferson Club is a skiing club for the rich and famous<br />
<strong>Snowmobiles at Night:</strong> How the bad guys get around<br />
<strong>Gavel:</strong> There are mock trials in this book by The People of the Third Position<br />
<strong>Helicopter:</strong> How else would you get up the mountain on short notice?</span>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-48652452975164657772010-08-27T05:41:00.009-05:002011-02-14T00:02:02.104-06:00Momma the Matchmaker<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtfg7vbHdvbIXD3lh5_dmsy8IklMfFagFMNK8wj2ErEaPih1MvKaPUy4hRFqZ8I5smKfr3N239qi-7Q7Lf0U-UBZSbJgPNfaXhZSatCNKdz7mubhf6CG7bk6vDfMXJ0MuvMNUbECSC4hi9/s1600/Bachelor-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510040316791588306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtfg7vbHdvbIXD3lh5_dmsy8IklMfFagFMNK8wj2ErEaPih1MvKaPUy4hRFqZ8I5smKfr3N239qi-7Q7Lf0U-UBZSbJgPNfaXhZSatCNKdz7mubhf6CG7bk6vDfMXJ0MuvMNUbECSC4hi9/s320/Bachelor-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 201px;" /></a><em>Will this bad boy make it to the altar? It takes a very special woman to catch a Chandler man... Meet the Chandlers - a trio of sexy brothers and the most eligible men in town...until their mother falls ill. As her three sons gather at her side, she makes two desperate demands: "Get married! Give me grandchildren!"<br />
<br />
Foreign correspondent Roman Chandler has always prized his freedom above all else. Now losing a coin toss has sealed this youngest brother's fate. Finding someone to escort down the aisle is the easy part - every wannabe bride in sleepy Yorkshire Falls is itching to get hitched to this gorgeous, globe-trotting Chandler man. But Roman still lusts after the woman who got away.<br />
<br />
Stunning heartbreaker Charlotte Bronson has come home to put down roots and get her erotic lingerie business off the ground. She wants a man who won't go chasing off to the far corners of the earth for a breaking news story. He wants her to say "I do". Will-she or won't-she? Can the love of the right woman transform a go-it-alone guy into a stick-around-forever kind of man?<br />
</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> The Bachelor<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://www.carlyphillips.com/">Carly Phillips</a><br />
<strong>Series:</strong> The Chandler Brothers, Book 1<br />
<strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 7/30/10- 7/31/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> July 1, 2002<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> Warner Books<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 301<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Contemporary Romance<br />
<br />
You often hear of a mother trying to marry off her daughters but Carly Phillips has flipped i<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd3UuMguHxvzgt2pFsz1meA1KlCq__iqgWHfN-xeuYoxkj6Exj7pkeOnp6lnAQiLttyL_t4qgMzcJdl8fQnR2IDp-6c20xJ2dd6MDxyjlitgwOJH_AqVafnLb2rLeQPxIoH8DLQL9BaXfg/s1600/Bachelor-lingerie+shop.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510040426259588242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd3UuMguHxvzgt2pFsz1meA1KlCq__iqgWHfN-xeuYoxkj6Exj7pkeOnp6lnAQiLttyL_t4qgMzcJdl8fQnR2IDp-6c20xJ2dd6MDxyjlitgwOJH_AqVafnLb2rLeQPxIoH8DLQL9BaXfg/s200/Bachelor-lingerie+shop.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 148px;" /></a>t with her Chandler Brothers series. Though not her first published book, <em>The Bachelor</em> was Phillips’ first single title release under this pseudonym (she has published under her real name Karen Drogin before) and it was very successful mainly thanks to the fact that Kelly Ripa featured it for one of her book club picks. The main idea for this series was given to Ms. Phillips by an editor and the author said she just “ran with the rest.”<br />
<br />
<em>The Bachelor</em> vaguely reminded me of <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/simply-wonderful.html"><em>It’s a Wonderful Life</em> </a>when George Bailey was going to leave Bedford Falls and travel the world except Roman has already done that and he doesn’t want to be tied down (once his father died, his older brother even got roped into keeping the family newspaper running too). Unfortunately, his mom tells him and <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmgKEWK71DcBRhszi1X_zczCgogsrLq8S4drYX4WAkhNOCm-a7XeUfUAJMLL3cp3NElc3592Er3YxGLi50ayuzevxqA-hLJsQgMrOXUR2ffOaOTDSfYUFGnICSpNz9yWD_INtQrmu4x-Kg/s1600/Bachelor-Newspaper.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510040558210592850" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmgKEWK71DcBRhszi1X_zczCgogsrLq8S4drYX4WAkhNOCm-a7XeUfUAJMLL3cp3NElc3592Er3YxGLi50ayuzevxqA-hLJsQgMrOXUR2ffOaOTDSfYUFGnICSpNz9yWD_INtQrmu4x-Kg/s200/Bachelor-Newspaper.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 137px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>his brothers that she is ill and hints that she wants grandchildren before she dies. Through a coin-toss, he’s the one who gets picked to give up his bachelor ways though he still plans on not being tied down. Charlotte on the other hand, wants a man that will stick around. Her father left her mother heartbroken when he went off to become a Hollywood actor. No matter how much attraction there has always been between the two, and the attraction is just as instant in their reunion, she refuses to give in… at first of course. Its freedom vs. stability in this book and how much will the two main characters be willing to compromise?<br />
<br />
Carly Phillips writes mainly character-driven plots and while not as funny as Susan Elizabeth Phillips (the panty thief in this one<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFVa-I98YwJ-BjIcUstixssIePja7IPx6rG7QkUOK6u_WDLdm-pxerJ1auqT-B1kWsa0UJkx_3V3ApGXO9ajMqDA_Ks3ynb8edxIM_0MWiSQCe8lG2x05drannqJ5uopypb6krntsGMdom/s1600/Bachelor-heartburn_relief.bmp"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510040764934076434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFVa-I98YwJ-BjIcUstixssIePja7IPx6rG7QkUOK6u_WDLdm-pxerJ1auqT-B1kWsa0UJkx_3V3ApGXO9ajMqDA_Ks3ynb8edxIM_0MWiSQCe8lG2x05drannqJ5uopypb6krntsGMdom/s200/Bachelor-heartburn_relief.bmp" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 150px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a> notwithstanding) her romance is just as hot. Her characters--even the minor ones-- are so memorable that I wouldn’t be surprised if Yorkshire Falls is based on a real town. I really liked Roman and Charlotte as well; even if I sometimes had problems with things they did or said. For example, their reunion bothered me a little. I know that Phillips books are generally like this but they jumped right into the nuzzling before the reintroductions. I don’t care what kind of chemistry you have with someone; it’s highly unlikely that’s going to happen. However, this is a fantasy romance and I was more than willing to suspend disbelief.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>Since taking over as publisher of the <em>Yorkshire Falls Gazette </em>for his father almost twenty years earlier, he’d become much too serious, bossy, and overprotective. Thank God he had his father’s handsome, chiseled face to make a decent first impression before he opened his mouth and started taking control. Good thing women loved a protective man and most single women in this town would marry Chase in a heartbeat. He was handsome, as were Rick and Roman.<br />
Her goal was to marry off all her three of her boys, and she would. But first they had to desire more from woman that sex. Not that there was anything wrong with sex; in fact, it could be more than pleasant, she thought, remembering. But it was her sons’ mind-set that presented her with a problem. They were men.<br />
<br />
But in today’s world, a woman had to offer a man a challenge. Excitement. And even then, Raina sensed her boys would balk. Chandler men needed a special woman to pique their interest and keep it. Raina sighed. How ironic that she, a woman who held marriage and children as her ideal, raised three sons who thought the word bachelor was sacred. With their attitudes she’d never have the grandchildren she desired. They’d never have the happiness they deserved.<br />
<br />
Ten years, and the flame burned hotter than ever. Which only proved one thing: Temptation or no temptation, Roman couldn’t afford to get involved with Charlotte. Not now. Not ever.<br />
<br />
Just as he came to the conclusion that he wanted only one woman, the single females of Yorkshire Falls decided to declare open season. Roman let out a heavy sigh as he realized what was in store for him from the town’s feminine population. In his younger days, he’d have appreciated the attention. Now he just wanted to be left alone.<br />
</strong></blockquote><br />
<u>Chandler Brothers Series</u><br />
1. The Bachelor (2002)<br />
2. The Playboy (2002)<br />
3. The Heartbreaker (2003)<br />
<br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> You're fit, Mrs. Chandler. The cardiogram is normal and so is your blood pressure. Nothing more than a bad case of indigestion. An antacid, some rest, and you should be fine." The doctor slipped her stethoscope around her neck and made another notation in the chart.<br />
<br />
<em>Find Carly Phillips Online</em><br />
<a href="http://www.carlyphillips.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://www.myspace.com/carlyphillips">MySpace</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/CarlyPhillipsFanPage">Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/carlyphillips">Twitter</a><br />
<a href="http://www.plotmonkeys.com/">PlotMonkey's Blog</a> (group author blog)<br />
<br />
<strong>Links:<br />
</strong><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carly_Phillips">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.carlyphillips.com/diarypg1/">Diary of a Cinderella Story Article</a> by Carly Phillips<br />
My <a href="http://ladytinksblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/cover-contemplation-time.html">Cover Contemplation</a> Post<br />
<strong>Interviews</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.myshelf.com/haveyouheard/02/phillips.htm">My Shelf</a><br />
<a href="http://www.aromancereview.com/interviews/carlyphillips.phtml">A Romance Review</a><br />
<br />
Source: My personal collection, paperback<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations</em></strong><br />
<strong>Lingerie Shop:</strong> The main female character in this book owns a lingerie shop called Charlotte’s Attic<br />
<strong>Newspaper:</strong> The main male character is a freelance writer for various newspapers<br />
<strong>Heartburn:</strong> Raina Chandler is willing to do anything to see her boys married, including pretending her bad case of heartburn is really a bad heart!</span>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-1112071099764928052010-08-25T07:47:00.010-05:002011-02-14T00:04:59.501-06:00Reopening the Sweetheart Murder Case<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid322yj06bfnAT__hTWFjtDwYW1kj4HWc9dBuIgSG0xgTdSSOmqfO1lDZaEk_5KDCLFChfWJtLkqdlS1GjQs2rQaxXXJjpjUYnDII5b_UCqwOUj0YHC31_SwSqzdLRqfPrwkjRflTXi2-c/s1600/sweetheart-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509331912480222802" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid322yj06bfnAT__hTWFjtDwYW1kj4HWc9dBuIgSG0xgTdSSOmqfO1lDZaEk_5KDCLFChfWJtLkqdlS1GjQs2rQaxXXJjpjUYnDII5b_UCqwOUj0YHC31_SwSqzdLRqfPrwkjRflTXi2-c/s320/sweetheart-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 199px;" /></a><em>It's a minor accident that brings prosecutor Kerry McGrath to the plastic surgeon's office with her beloved daughter, Robin. But even as the doctor assures Kerry that her daughter's scars will heal, she spies a familiar-looking beautiful woman in the waiting room and is seized by an overpowering sense of deja vu. When, on a return visit, she sees the same haunting face-- on another woman-- she has an intense flash of recognition: it's the face of Suzanne Reardon, the "Sweetheart Murder" victim, killed more than ten years ago! The case resulted in a guilty verdict and a life sentence for Suzanne's husband, Skip. But for what possible reason would Dr. Smith be giving his patients the face of a dead woman?<br />
<br />
As Kerry immerses herself in a fresh investigation, she is catapulted into the strange and ominous territory of those so obsessed with beauty they'll kill for it. Each new piece of evidence she unearths reveals a disturbing cache of questions. Not only does everyone involved want to keep the case closed, it's clear somebody will stop at nothing to keep it sealed forever. As she delves deeper she finds she's wrestling with a force so sinister that her own life-- and her daughter's-- is threatened with increasing peril...<br />
<br />
Interweaving fascinating characters with deeply daring, staggeringly unpredictable plot twists; Mary Higgins Clark reminds us that she is, indeed, America's Queen of Suspense.<br />
</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Let Me Call You Sweetheart<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://www.maryhigginsclark.com/">Mary Higgins Clark<br />
</a><strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 7/29/10- 7/30/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> May 1, 1995<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> Pocket Books (Simon & Schuster)<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 308<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Mystery/ Cold Case- Crime (Lawyers)<br />
<br />
Plastic surgeons, art thief’s, a wealthy crook, and an innocent man in prison are all connected to the ten year old murder of Suzanne Reardon in Mary Higgins Clark 1995 New York Times bestselling book <em>Let Me Call You Sweetheart</em>. Kerry McGrath, attorney prosecutor is the main character here and when she <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg85h4q2peMY2XfU5_3AftfsaNoE_StSO60G3YCASVkaLilQwcflQDPLqw-tF8C0Q_-7BfsLoOpJgcAtWa8GOewC5NobImZMgVtMkNXQqawo5KFrFgZDUoTdqPFHoF8V6Zp4K5j2CRsCXpb/s1600/sweetheart-roses.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509332104563794930" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg85h4q2peMY2XfU5_3AftfsaNoE_StSO60G3YCASVkaLilQwcflQDPLqw-tF8C0Q_-7BfsLoOpJgcAtWa8GOewC5NobImZMgVtMkNXQqawo5KFrFgZDUoTdqPFHoF8V6Zp4K5j2CRsCXpb/s200/sweetheart-roses.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 197px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>stumbles across the fact that the man convicted of the killing may be wrongfully accused, she stops at nothing-- even the fact that it could cost her judgeship or even her daughter‘s life-- to find out the truth.<br />
<br />
A good number of this author’s titles are based on popular songs including this one which has been recorded by several artists since including <a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4977953533311201461#">Bing Crosby</a>. However, even though the song does make its way into the story, Ms. Clark says that her editor Michael Korda gave her the idea for this story when she told him she wanted to write about plastic surgery. In an interview she claimed that: "Michael said, 'What if a plastic surgeon gave the same face to a bunch of different women? Why would he do that?' Then I knew we had it. That became the book." Mary Higgins Clark has had twenty made for TV movie’s adaptations from her books including this one in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0129198/">1997</a> starring Meredith Baxter.<br />
<br />
<em>Let Me Call You Sweetheart</em> is written from a multitude of different points of view- even the murderer- though you have to guess which one he is (no, I wasn’t able to guess who the murderer was until the last minute). Surprisingly I didn’t find this too confusing since the author had<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQJyX7o0Byg7BUUZmmeenN6eZ7n3_1PCg1tOQPa3Y88_Vl1LHaNhQi5TCS_6V-torfr1e8ceatPUO1pSS273zsnxGE0lFygHF9KJ7BZ5givVWSQs3uDjPb_l3PvlaITHrmn7EEXaUwV7i/s1600/sweetheart-lawyer.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509332337887029298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQJyX7o0Byg7BUUZmmeenN6eZ7n3_1PCg1tOQPa3Y88_Vl1LHaNhQi5TCS_6V-torfr1e8ceatPUO1pSS273zsnxGE0lFygHF9KJ7BZ5givVWSQs3uDjPb_l3PvlaITHrmn7EEXaUwV7i/s200/sweetheart-lawyer.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a> fleshed out almost all of the characters (even minor ones) very well. Just about every character in this book is some kind of lawyer, married to a lawyer, or in the case of little Robin, related to one. I don’t tend to read books where lawyers are the main character very often (which is why I wasn’t that fond of the book at first) but I was pleased to note that not much lawyer jargon makes it into the book. Matter of fact, I got the feeling that the reason so many of the characters were lawyers in the first place was to make their investigation more plausible. The characters are also all equally obsessed with something or someone. For some, it’s Suzanne Reardon, others the pursuit of justice or staying out of prison, and still others like Jason Arnett and Suzanne herself, its riches and lovely things.<br />
<br />
Even though the story is told through multiple people, Kerry McGrath is definitely the main character. I felt like Kerry’s character could have used some more exploring though. I wasn’t even too sure if Kerry was bitter about her divorce or not. She doesn’t seem to like her ex-husband- who I really, really didn’t like- very much but I still got the feeling she regretted his <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBaPLI826zgyckUpgxwbnRBwNyGXABK98KTEz6yoeTjNlBzKQfG2XBg9sub71hFRVpqsKu6ce3yFq3A2xu9njsudxaMePOS_4xcbGINbuYWijngUM2KtyUU6KOSJNQiEL1hCu-xjvF1C4S/s1600/sweetheart-jail.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509332560733912994" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBaPLI826zgyckUpgxwbnRBwNyGXABK98KTEz6yoeTjNlBzKQfG2XBg9sub71hFRVpqsKu6ce3yFq3A2xu9njsudxaMePOS_4xcbGINbuYWijngUM2KtyUU6KOSJNQiEL1hCu-xjvF1C4S/s200/sweetheart-jail.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 150px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>decision to leave her. She just had this loneliness to her though it’s never specifically stated so I was glad of Geoff Dorso’s addition to the story. I was really fond of him, especially since Robin said he reminded her of Jimmy Stewart. At times I got the feeling that this could have been the start of a series (which to my knowledge, this author does not write) because it felt like everyone but the main character was fleshed-out.<br />
<br />
This book does start off slow but I was very eager to learn “whodunit” about halfway through and once I thought I had it, I thought Ms. Higgins Clark was very clever! I waffled back and forth on who could be the murderer and who was just too conveniently set up to look like the murderer that I almost didn’t quite catch on to the real murderer until it was too forgone to come to any other conclusion. The real murderer shocked me stupid because it seemed to come out of left field (I was really upset with who it was, though I‘ve heard that this is a fairly common plot device for some mystery writers). There were no clues as to who it was but a steadily revolving door of suspects of who it could be. I found some reasonable doubt fo<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdRwZSZAWLKh4vAk69tcqmbPreR3gcVVDkXtYocUiUBOfnsWQTvh6Efgi0VyJu1KPXV5TpOeDz62A_dEwFpv4CGhXRGGEZK_XCaFN6KFT9kEDxcODhygkHSw2FNgvt4pcP0CxTzlRyX4Ny/s1600/Sweetheart-art+thief.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509332796644389010" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdRwZSZAWLKh4vAk69tcqmbPreR3gcVVDkXtYocUiUBOfnsWQTvh6Efgi0VyJu1KPXV5TpOeDz62A_dEwFpv4CGhXRGGEZK_XCaFN6KFT9kEDxcODhygkHSw2FNgvt4pcP0CxTzlRyX4Ny/s200/Sweetheart-art+thief.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 118px;" /></a>r every one of them too, except of course the real killer because nothing was ever even hinted at to make me suspect that person. I even believed at first that the husband could have been the murderer after all but I very quickly dismissed that thought when I realized the whole purpose of the book was to get him out of jail, plus it didn’t seem very likely when it was his turn to narrate.<br />
<br />
<em>Let Me Call You Sweetheart</em> is only the third Mary Higgins Clark book I’ve ever read (<em>Nighttime is</em> <em>My Time</em> and <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/do-you-believe-in-killer-reincarnation.html">On the Street Where You Live</a></em> before this one) but it’s the second time I’ve seen her use a cold case as the jumping off of her mystery, there the similarities end. While I was right about the doctor, the thief and the crook’s motives for and against them being the murderers, I was disappointed that the author felt like she had to pull the trick she did with the ending after she had set everything up so neatly throughout the course of the book.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>Kerry’s throat tightened. I know you, she thought. But from where? She swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. That face-- I’ve seen her before.<br />
<br />
“I just inherited some money from my aunt. Can you make me pretty?”<br />
He had done more than that-- he had transformed her. He had made her beautiful. Now Barbera was working in Manhattan at a large, prestigious P.R. firm. She had always had brains, but combining those brains with that special kind of beauty had truly changed her life.<br />
<br />
She scanned the article, then dropped the newspaper back into her briefcase. Shaking her head, she remembered how appalled she had been when, shortly after Robin was born, Bob had told her he had accepted a job with Bartlett and Associates.<br />
“All their clients have one foot in jail,” she had protested. “And the other foot should be there.”<br />
“And they pay their bills on time,” Bob had replied. “Kerry, you stay in the prosecutor’s office if you want. I have other plans.”<br />
A year later he had announced that those plans included marrying Alice Bartlett.<br />
<br />
Over coffee they finally discussed the Reardon case. Kerry began by saying frankly, “I sat in on the sentencing ten years ago, and the look on his face and what he said were imprinted on my memory. I’ve heard a lot of guilty people swear they were innocent-- after all, what have they got to lose?-- but there was something about his statement that got to me.”<br />
“Because he was telling the truth.”<br />
Kerry looked directly at him. “I warn you, Geoff, I intend to play devil’s advocate, and while reading that transcript raises a lot of questions for me, it certainly doesn’t convince me that Reardon is an innocent man. Neither did yesterday’s visit. Either he’s lying or Dr. Smith is lying. Skip Reardon has a very good reason to lie. Smith doesn’t.<br />
<br />
The accusations she had thrown at him made him shudder with revulsion. It was the same revulsion he felt when he looked at a maimed or scarred or ugly face. He could feel his very being tremble with the need to change it, to redeem it, to make things right. To find for it the beauty that his skilled hands could wrest from bone and muscle and flesh. </strong></blockquote><br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> As often as humanly possible he tried to put Suzanne out of his mind. Sometimes he achieved peace for a few hours or even managed to sleep through the night. It was the only way he could function, go about the daily business of living.<br />
<br />
<em>Find Mary Higgins Clark Online</em><br />
<a href="http://www.maryhigginsclark.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://authors.simonandschuster.biz/Mary-Higgins-Clark/6230">Simon & Schuster Webpage</a> (videos included)<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Saddle-River-New-Jersey/Mary-Higgins-Clark/97324713604">Facebook</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Links</strong><br />
<a href="http://media.barnesandnoble.com/?fr_story=60a10cd523d8890b1ed8ead0cd51c4f09593cb71&rf=sitemap">Audio Excerpt</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Higgins_Clark">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Higgins_Clark"></a>My <a href="http://ladytinksblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/cover-contemplations.html">Cover Contemplation</a> Post<br />
<br />
<strong>Interviews</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.writerswrite.com/journal/may00/clark.htm">Writers Write </a><br />
<a href="http://www.maryhigginsclark.com/q_and_a.php">Q&A With the Author</a><br />
<br />
<div>Source: My personal copy, paperback</div><div><br />
<u>Related Reviews</u><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/do-you-believe-in-killer-reincarnation.html">On the Street Where You Live</a> (2001)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations</em></strong><br />
<strong>Roses:</strong> Scattered over the deceased’s body<br />
<strong>Courtroom Scales:</strong> A majority of the characters are lawyers, senators, and would-be judges.<br />
<strong>Prison:</strong> Suzanne’s husband was convicted of killing her but he’s innocent!<br />
<strong>Art Thief:</strong> Jason Arnett is an art theif who hangs around the high society then robs them blind</span></div></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-43712159052102582192010-08-23T03:28:00.012-05:002011-02-14T00:06:47.488-06:00McQueen is Bullitt<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR14Vfz-bDaeg9AmkQc4E8W2VsFl7ZPTmOi-RvlfLIMhyphenhyphenqAHggyenbY2AvSgLWnjqR3WTW4Wu63yhPjUmH6bQAewHz8NGJ42BoCslhd-QL-q9dXfh_cWztYzW1qc6zICI6LfOaLjmzvTfr/s1600/Bullitt-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508523903277831954" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR14Vfz-bDaeg9AmkQc4E8W2VsFl7ZPTmOi-RvlfLIMhyphenhyphenqAHggyenbY2AvSgLWnjqR3WTW4Wu63yhPjUmH6bQAewHz8NGJ42BoCslhd-QL-q9dXfh_cWztYzW1qc6zICI6LfOaLjmzvTfr/s320/Bullitt-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 236px;" /></a><em>Detective Frank Bullitt has just received what sounds like a routine assignment: keep a star witness out of sight and out of danger for 48 hours, then deliver him to the courtroom on Monday A.M. But before the night is out, the witness will lie dying of shotgun wounds. And Bullitt, a no-glitter, all-guts cop, won't rest until he nabs the gunmen... and the elusive underworld kingpin who hired them.<br />
<br />
Steve McQueen plays the title role in Bullitt, a gritty detective thriller featuring the Academy Award-winning editing of Frank P. Keller and the tautly realistic direction of Peter Yates (Breaking Away, Robbery). From opening shot to closing shootout, Bullitt is packed with authentic touches-- on-location San Francisco filming, crisp dialogue and uncompromising, to-the-letter police, hospital and morgue procedures.<br />
<br />
But the most memorably authentic touch of all is Bullitt's celebrated car chase. McQueen, an expert automobile and motorcycle racer, does his own stunt driving as he propels his high-performance Mustang GT around and over San Francisco's fabled hills at speeds up to 115 miles an hour. The chase, filled with screeches, sensations and stomach-churning leaps, is one of the most memorable pursuit sequences in movie history.<br />
<br />
Bullitt's tough-minded realism is never off target. McQueen-- cool, calm and convincing as only he can be-- is a master at this style, and Frank Bullitt is his masterpiece.</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Bullitt<br />
<strong>Release:</strong> October 17, 1968<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Crime Drama<br />
<strong>MPAA Rating:</strong> PG-13<br />
<strong>Based On:</strong> Mute Witness by Robert L. Fish (aka Robert L. Pike)<br />
<strong>Writer:</strong> Alan Trustman & Harry Kleiner<br />
<strong>Director:</strong> Peter Yates<br />
<strong>Music By:</strong> Lalo Schifrin<br />
<strong>Produced By:</strong> Philip D'Antoni<br />
<strong>Distributed By:</strong> Warner Brothers/Seven Arts<br />
<strong>Run Time:</strong> 114 minutes<br />
<br />
Now widely acknowledged as the first of the great modern car chase movies, Steve McQueen’s 1968 signature cop movie <em>Bullitt </em>was nominated for Best Sound but it won the Oscar for Best Film Editing and the screenwriters for the film won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America among several other awards. A slightly convoluted film, <em>Bullitt</em> is very reminiscent of other cop TV shows and movies from the time period but it’s the car chase that makes <em>Bullitt</em> worthwhile. It’s not as fancy as the ones in today’s movies so it’s <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3cQTelIPvsnhyphenhyphentMimF3gY-6o8wHfvmhb0s9M6hf74Y7wqvUCO-72ZsJbRLYDP_3qtMXVTyuEGEUPbA4Zw0qXVCeZGVQf9Mk0KVQVPoxN2R_67JBavDa-ZBhHEeD7gU8c-6-XLZ_Zf7EQR/s1600/bullitt-with+prosecuter.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508524070232508594" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3cQTelIPvsnhyphenhyphentMimF3gY-6o8wHfvmhb0s9M6hf74Y7wqvUCO-72ZsJbRLYDP_3qtMXVTyuEGEUPbA4Zw0qXVCeZGVQf9Mk0KVQVPoxN2R_67JBavDa-ZBhHEeD7gU8c-6-XLZ_Zf7EQR/s200/bullitt-with+prosecuter.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 110px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>not sleek and pretty (well, the cars are) but it’s much more real. Ironically, that particular car chase scene serves as inspiration to a good majority of directors who make chase scenes in their films.<br />
<br />
We’ve definitely come a long way since the hospitals, police work, and airports back when this film was made! One thing we haven’t improved and that’s the cars, well the look of them anyway. Steve McQueen has an awesome cop car in the form of a 1968 Ford Mustang GT 390 CID Fastback and the villains drive the even prettier 440 Magnum Dodge Charger. McQueen actually did almost all of his own stunt driving in the film and those are the actual speeds (sometimes 115 mph) in the chase, not camera work. They worked on a racetrack at first but the entire chase scene with those beautiful cars flying (they are literally airborne several times) by on the San Francisco streets are all filmed on location. Of the car chase sequence LIFE magazine said, "Thanks to nothing more <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGRPHWCB0E0ZnSJsZafEs6AukxXL9j2UJOiUfqRzRp4_4lgOI-y-XSySFwSwBW7mfrfE-PqXSYkBQs9cAJfAE9GNhCuxuXi5Srt_6cNq9BSNaz5JXZFNLkhs13rM-oUtW92joqUaJWdAvO/s1600/Bullitt-girl.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508524251111490482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGRPHWCB0E0ZnSJsZafEs6AukxXL9j2UJOiUfqRzRp4_4lgOI-y-XSySFwSwBW7mfrfE-PqXSYkBQs9cAJfAE9GNhCuxuXi5Srt_6cNq9BSNaz5JXZFNLkhs13rM-oUtW92joqUaJWdAvO/s200/Bullitt-girl.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 112px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>complicated than good, basic moviemaking (intelligent camera placement and editing); this becomes an action sequence that must be compared with the best in film history."<br />
<br />
All the hospital scenes are real with real doctors and nurses in a real hospital. They did go back sometimes and film with actors but the director wanted this picture not to be theatrical but more based in reality. Mr. McQueen said, "The operation that takes place in the film was with an actor of course but with real doctors. The feelings, the sensitivities that were in that hospital, this is the kind of reality that's important in motion pictures. If you try to act it, it doesn't quite come across as if you're really doing it. We had the reality we wanted." This firm basis in reality is one of the main reasons that this film has endured.<br />
<br />
Frank Bullitt's girlfriend Cathy brings a bit of softness to the film (and McQueen’s character) that is predominately about gritty police work, which is something she doesn't really approve of. She's also the only female character (not including nurses and crowd extras of course) in the film. Cathy is played by Jacqueline Bisset (a Bond girl in <em>Casino Royale</em>) and this was her breakout film. The first movie I saw with her in was <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/08/who-how-why.html">Murder on the Orient Express</a></em> where she played a Countess but I liked her a whole lot more in this role. It was rumored that McQueen and Bisset had an affair during the filming of t<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzR_dASlvA0z3lg8T3G0w6NSB-TNExuZLwdEkBGP-HJCwRbMw0YbpGpiu_-NuUkJh-NrcNF1VnkQ_ec0OQmgjagY_EhDPVP-kMfMedL9Sc-ZIk4-YECxPJPwe863jo6bFESA9EBqOtHxU4/s1600/bullitt-hospital.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508524548849805058" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzR_dASlvA0z3lg8T3G0w6NSB-TNExuZLwdEkBGP-HJCwRbMw0YbpGpiu_-NuUkJh-NrcNF1VnkQ_ec0OQmgjagY_EhDPVP-kMfMedL9Sc-ZIk4-YECxPJPwe863jo6bFESA9EBqOtHxU4/s200/bullitt-hospital.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 110px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>he movie and whether it’s true or not, I thought they had great chemistry.<br />
<br />
Peter Yates was hired to direct this film because McQueen had seen his car chase scene in the film Robbery. This was his first American film and though McQueen was said to be hard on directors, they got along fairly well. McQueen and Don Gordon (who were friends and worked together in several other films) did their homework for this film by riding with San Francisco police to get a feel for police work. Gordon, who often played police officers on TV, was actually mistaken for a real cop at the time!<br />
<br />
This was the first film I’ve ever seen with Steve McQueen in it but I did know who he was before I watched it because he is such a big name star even 30 years after his death. Especially with all of the tributes to him in film and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlywcuw-1TU">music</a>. He truly was a good-looking guy and he was often proclaimed as the “King of Cool.” He’s also a really good actor and the best thing in this film (mainly his friction wi<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAYh42BxhLeM1lC3U574Rnlf7hwjofkW-L0Tx2txq7trqbxomozpD_VZfUU_oeq3ZTfHkobq9OXLQfPfLv1_glgFqqIFcz5Xny1eRrd7xzVYz6lNYsRwiL4PbU_wwNLHI2puLkRMRePZC9/s1600/Bullitt-car+chase.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508524803559032946" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAYh42BxhLeM1lC3U574Rnlf7hwjofkW-L0Tx2txq7trqbxomozpD_VZfUU_oeq3ZTfHkobq9OXLQfPfLv1_glgFqqIFcz5Xny1eRrd7xzVYz6lNYsRwiL4PbU_wwNLHI2puLkRMRePZC9/s200/Bullitt-car+chase.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 116px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>th Chalmers the politician played by Robert Vaughn) besides the car chase scene. Though <em>Bullitt </em>made him a ton of money, McQueen originally didn’t want the role in the film because this was the time when people, a good majority his younger fans, started calling cops “pigs“ (not to mention his own troubled youth had made him slightly prejudiced too). It was because of the realistic portrayal that he decided to take the role of Frank Bullitt. In an interview promoting <em>Bullitt</em> McQueen said, "We're trying to show what a cop could be like. Everybody dislikes cops till they need one." There have been rumors of a remake of Steve McQueen’s enduring film but as of yet, there’s no one to even attempt to step into his shoes.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>Bullitt: I want to know about Ross. What is the deal you had with him?<br />
Chalmers: Deal? Lieutenant, don’t try to evade the responsibility. In your "parlance", you blew it. You knew the significance of his testimony, yet you failed to take adequate measures to protect him. So to you it was a job, no more. Were it more, and you'd the dedication I was lead to believe…<br />
Bullitt: You believe what you want. You work your side of the street, and I'll work mine.<br />
<br />
Bullitt: Look Chalmers, let's understand each other... I don't like you.<br />
Chalmers: Oh come on now, don't be naive now lieutenant. We both know how careers are made. Integrity is something you sell the public.<br />
Bullitt: You sell whatever you want, but don't sell it here tonight.<br />
Chalmers: Frank, we must all compromise.<br />
Bullitt: Bullshit. Get the hell out of here now.</strong></blockquote><br />
<em>Find Bullitt Online</em><br />
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062765/">Imdb.com</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullitt">Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=21345">TCM.com</a> (neat featurette on stuntmen, talks about <em>Bullitt</em> too)<br />
<br />
<strong>Links</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.rjsmith.com/bullitt-locations.html">Bullitt Locations in San Francisco</a><br />
<a href="http://www.mcqueenonline.com/">Steve McQueen Online</a><br />
A very thorough <a href="http://www.ponysite.de/bullit.htm">Fan Site</a><br />
<br />
Trailer<br />
<object height="285" width="380"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gEex6mOATuY?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gEex6mOATuY?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="380" height="285"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Best Classic Car Chase (slow first 3 min)<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z-7IEPTAoTg?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z-7IEPTAoTg?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
The Making of Bullitt<br />
<span style="color: #999999; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 78%;"> <br />
<object height="260" width="325"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><param name="movie" value="http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=952448,t=1,mt=video"><embed src="http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=952448,t=1,mt=video" width="325" height="260" allowfullscreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent"></embed></object></span><br />
<br />
<u>Related Reviews</u><br />
<strong>Jacqueline Bisset</strong><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/08/who-how-why.html">Murder on the Orient Express</a> (1974)Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-10421700620745170632010-08-20T20:17:00.012-05:002011-02-14T00:09:16.468-06:00No Soul but Plenty of Personality<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYEeqms-gkE92xxvDc3KKjw0M8Fq-NIS-FB3rLEIZ0TgdWvbTsQaV7RPYHbnlxGo34CDlGjtwScvLlWl2uj9gokj3M7BWtiEvk5XUR4hTjTOjqOyQp_OFEhW__dnAQWBroQBs_Ov6zdcW/s1600/soulless-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507668110250042898" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyYEeqms-gkE92xxvDc3KKjw0M8Fq-NIS-FB3rLEIZ0TgdWvbTsQaV7RPYHbnlxGo34CDlGjtwScvLlWl2uj9gokj3M7BWtiEvk5XUR4hTjTOjqOyQp_OFEhW__dnAQWBroQBs_Ov6zdcW/s320/soulless-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 198px;" /></a><em>ALEXIA TARABOTTI IS LABORING UNDER A GREAT MANY SOCIAL TRIBULATIONS.<br />
<br />
First, she has no soul. Second, she’s a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.<br />
<br />
Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire-- and the appalling Lord Macon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.<br />
<br />
With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia is responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London’s high society? Will her soulless ability to negate supernatural powers prove useful or just plan embarrassing? Finally, who is the real enemy, and do they have treacle tart?</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Soulless<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://gailcarriger.com/">Gail Carriger<br />
</a><strong>Series:</strong> The Parasol Procterate, Book 1<br />
<strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 7/22/10- 7/27/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> October 1, 2009<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> Orbit (Hatchette Book Group)<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 357 (paperback)<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Victorian Urbane Fantasy/ Romance- Steampunk, Comedy<br />
<br />
“What’s the weirdest most eccentric historical phenomenon of them all? Answer: The Great British Empire. Clearly, one tiny island could only conquer half the known world with supernatural aid. Those absurd Victorian manners and ridiculous fashions were obviously dictated by vampires. And, without a doubt, the British army regimental system functioned on werewolf pack dynamics.” This was <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhblLvwIOWZBhsvPYN3SFmswoHyo_guHncl90jh_8pmALTt4FPvTNNf_njprdodXtlnKiFxz_76prmx1_hpdOOQ-F88LFNrd-zdyLYyMzqb87JrvMpx40zQHkqPd0D4rNpA5mUpxabW_mY6/s1600/Soulless-professor+lyall.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507668203799572498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhblLvwIOWZBhsvPYN3SFmswoHyo_guHncl90jh_8pmALTt4FPvTNNf_njprdodXtlnKiFxz_76prmx1_hpdOOQ-F88LFNrd-zdyLYyMzqb87JrvMpx40zQHkqPd0D4rNpA5mUpxabW_mY6/s320/Soulless-professor+lyall.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 173px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 179px;" /></a>what inspired Gail Carriger (which is a pseudonym) to write her debut novel <em>Soulless</em>, which is the first story in her Parasol Protectorate Series featuring Miss Alexia Tarabotti. Soulless was the winner of ALA’s Alex Award (books written for adults with an appeal to YA audiences), a Locus Award Finalist (write-ins from readers of the Locus magazine) for first novel, a few other award nominations, and on several bestseller lists.<br />
<br />
I don't read that much set in Victorian times, I’ve never read a steampunk novel before, and I'm not a Jane Austen fan yet I still just adored <em>Soulless</em> because though it has all of these elements, it remains modern too. I wasn’t sure what to think about this at first since everything seems to be written in third person but it didn’t take me long to realize I had discovered something truly unique. It was an amazingly built alternate world, the story and characters were actually funny, and the romance angle is swoon-worthy. The alternate history on why people left for The Colonies (Queen Elizabeth sanctioned the supernatural presence in England, making America into a “deeply superstitious place“) was interesting but it doesn’t reflect <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiahwCS4iu9DPPknKAA5n-Mg7qWul8CJbonzcrEHiJ_OkRZ_o-EOt7AUiS0osvhrQHk6KL9W7AFFAYgZRHUDBHT7mB-0QPg5lD8l20COcgIqmBWDFuQ6QjLby3wzVEm8aH82NJqVxscAlyP/s1600/soulless-parasol.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507668373512936434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiahwCS4iu9DPPknKAA5n-Mg7qWul8CJbonzcrEHiJ_OkRZ_o-EOt7AUiS0osvhrQHk6KL9W7AFFAYgZRHUDBHT7mB-0QPg5lD8l20COcgIqmBWDFuQ6QjLby3wzVEm8aH82NJqVxscAlyP/s200/soulless-parasol.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 169px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>favorably upon America (‘Strange place, that overseas land, where religion and wealth did the talking and history and age held so little sway‘). Which is why I had originally thought the author herself was British but she’s actually American too.<br />
<br />
Alexia is very prim and proper (even slightly snobbish at times) but at the same time exactly the opposite of what you think of when you hear those words. She’s a lady but she never hesitates to say what’s on her mind, bash the rude over the head with her parasol, and do precisely as she wants despite society’s rules. She’s a very intelligent woman (not quite as intelligent as Agatha from <a href="http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20021104">Girl Genius</a> but they could definitely talk shop, though for Alexia it‘s all theory) in an age when her gender is held against her and she’s very fond of tea and food too. I did think it was sad how much Alexia’s family seemed to dislike her though because being soulless doesn’t mean she doesn’t have feelings and their actions towards her has obviously affected her self-worth. Especially since her family does not know about her soulless state! Ms. Carriger said in an interview that Alexia was slightly inspired by a real person named Amelia B. Edwards who w<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtNH75_mGnpZeCjgMZFH9kHkPImH_rPiVWy5-3h3bpM6Q1z4sbcFKlFXVFn4pyfKAMWIBoTb-xb4uJOi6aY9EUjho4mL9-B8bNohzcwd_YH7_xA1Xb9NYc9W0rV-jePWde6QVDf6bn0wWb/s1600/Soulless-lord+ackladama%27s+ceiling.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507668598174019842" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtNH75_mGnpZeCjgMZFH9kHkPImH_rPiVWy5-3h3bpM6Q1z4sbcFKlFXVFn4pyfKAMWIBoTb-xb4uJOi6aY9EUjho4mL9-B8bNohzcwd_YH7_xA1Xb9NYc9W0rV-jePWde6QVDf6bn0wWb/s200/Soulless-lord+ackladama%27s+ceiling.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 106px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>as also a very proper Victorian lady who wrote a book called <em>A Thousand Miles up the Nile</em> about traveling along the Nile in Egypt essentially by herself at a time when that simply wasn't done by a woman.<br />
<br />
It’s very strange how Carriger presents her vampires. I’ve honestly never seen it done before (well, I‘ve never heard of a soulless human that can turn vampires and werewolves human by touch either but it was certainly neat). They’re mostly like bees and they even use bee terminology like drones, hives, queens, etc. It’s very odd but it does work for the world presented. The werewolves are very similar to others I have seen in fiction except that they eat a lot of raw meat. Normally I don’t like it when an author’s werewolves are more interesting or appealing than the vampires but I didn’t have that problem here (I don’t hate werewolves but I don’t love them very often. I do like all other kinds of Weres usually though), mainly because these characters are all so very rich an<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-_lVRgXFgi3GthIJd-jlsNBXE10gPZHXkAv-NUHPQR7cDOnspz5p7YKIljVwu1RYsUs9nzn_YXmvLRoBrJajFjIMZlebVYC4sxWSw7sXgDGZsmrE-XzGBT6bAY6VZ3wBM24vtxGRe1OJ/s1600/Soulless-steampunk.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507668909182344146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-_lVRgXFgi3GthIJd-jlsNBXE10gPZHXkAv-NUHPQR7cDOnspz5p7YKIljVwu1RYsUs9nzn_YXmvLRoBrJajFjIMZlebVYC4sxWSw7sXgDGZsmrE-XzGBT6bAY6VZ3wBM24vtxGRe1OJ/s200/Soulless-steampunk.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 150px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>d vibrant. Everyone from Alexia’s friend Ivy of the ugly hats to the flamboyant vampire friend Lord Akeldama of the dramatically outrageous fashions. The two werewolves presented were neat too. Professor Lyall actually reminded me a little of a Doctor Watson-type of character while Lord Maccon was very Alpha-male.<br />
<br />
As you can probably tell, <em>Soulless </em>is a very character driven book and that is probably what made the story so very appealing to me. I really do hope that Ms. Carriger writes a short story one day featuring Alexia and Lord Maccon’s very meeting. That hedgehog incident that was referred to a few times sounds delightfully funny! I would love to see something with Lord Akeldama as well, maybe how he and Alexia first met. I could easily see a graphic novel for this entire series as well. The author has said that she would like to give Alexia’s father his own book at one point which I’d love to read because though he’s mentioned quite often in <em>Soulless,</em> there wasn’t too much information about him in the story. Not even how he died!<br />
<br />
The author said in an interview that <em>Soulless</em> is essentially a “spo<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2PmOQ-SviO9m3kh4En4gV9n-avpfNEzV_G8Xw7Rt7Sworn-5lFfVG2Pfttu95q8Mk5Tqr_jx5R8HaABl3VSHKby4R4ejs_2UFoyogqsUTpxJN81QOge36PsyEBrlL8hrKwQfOHNhiP_MZ/s1600/soulless-author.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507669114179705378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2PmOQ-SviO9m3kh4En4gV9n-avpfNEzV_G8Xw7Rt7Sworn-5lFfVG2Pfttu95q8Mk5Tqr_jx5R8HaABl3VSHKby4R4ejs_2UFoyogqsUTpxJN81QOge36PsyEBrlL8hrKwQfOHNhiP_MZ/s200/soulless-author.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 154px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>of on Victorian melodrama romance” but she added to it. If Carriger had not included the steampunk, alternate history, supernatural, and preternatural elements in this story it would have been a typical spinster-catches-handsome-earl type of romance but with the way everything was written, Soulless is truly an amazing book. I haven’t seen so many blending of genres done so expertly in such new ways since <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/anita-blakes-first-book.html"><em>Guilty Pleasures</em> </a>by Laurell K. Hamilton (however, Alexia won‘t be featured in more than five novels). The author also “tossed nineteenth century science into the mix and realized that if the Victorians were studying vampires and werewolves (which they would do if they knew about them), not to mention developing weapons against them, technology would have evolved differently.” Carriger even sprinkled some steam punk, “as a side effect of [her] world’s theories about the soul” which is somewhat based in reality as there were scientists who tried to weigh the soul (by weighing the dead) in the real Victorian era, in amongst all the other subgenres too. In addition, she manages to add a bit of a mystery with the disappearing supernaturals and science fiction with the creepy scientists too. Can you tell how much I adored <em>Soulless</em>?<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>The fact that Alexia was preternatural had been explained to her at age six by a nice gentleman from the Civil Service with silver hair and a silver cane-- a werewolf specialist. Along with the dark hair and prominent nose, preternatural was something Miss Tarabotti had to thank her dead Italian father for. What it really meant was that words like I or me were just excessively theoretical for Alexia. She certainly had an identity and a heart that felt emotions and all that; she simply had no soul. Miss Alexia, age six, had nodded politely at the nice silver-haired gentlemen. The she had made certain to read oodles of ancient Greek philosophy dealing with reason, logic, and ethics. If she had no soul, she also had no morals, so she reckoned she had best develop some kind of alternative.<br />
<br />
Recently, this particular meadow, open to the sky and off the beaten track, had come into use by a dirigible company. They flew Giffard-style steam-powered airships with de Lome propellers. It was the latest and greatest in leisurely travel. The upper crust, in particular, had taken to the skies with enthusiasm. Floating had almost eclipsed hunting as the preferred pastime of the aristocracy. The ships were a sight to behold, and Alexia was particularly fond of them. She hoped one day to ride in one. The views were reportedly breathtaking, and they were rumored to serve an excellent high tea on board.<br />
<br />
I kissed her,” he explained, aggrieved.<br />
“Mmm, yes, I had the dubious pleasure of witnessing that, ah-hem, overly public occurrence.” Lyall sharpened his pen nib, using a small copper blade that ejected from the end of his glassicals.<br />
“Well! Why hasn’t she done anything about it?” the Alpha wanted to know.<br />
“You mean like whack you upside the noggin with that deadly parasol of hers? I would be cautious in that area if I were you. I am reasonably certain she had it custom made and tipped with silver.”<br />
<br />
She was after all, soulless and practical. “Mine is not precisely a bad life. I have material wealth and good health. Perhaps I am not useful or beloved by my family, but I have never suffered unduly. And I have my books.”<br />
</strong></blockquote><br />
<u>The Parasol Protectorate Series</u><br />
1. Soulless (2009)<br />
2. Changeless (2010)<br />
3. Blameless (2010)<br />
4. Heartless (2011)<br />
5. Timeless (2011)<br />
<br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> Miss Alexia Tarabotti was not enjoying her evening. Private balls were never more than middling amusements for spinsters, and Miss Tarabotti was not the kind of spinster who could garner even that much pleasure from the event. To put the pudding in the puff: she had retreated to the library, her favorite sanctuary in any house, only to happen upon an unexpected vampire.<br />
<br />
<em>Find Gail Carriger Online<br />
</em><a href="http://gailcarriger.com/">Official Site</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/gailcarriger"></a><a href="http://gailcarriger.livejournal.com/">Livejournal Blog</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/gailcarriger">Twitter</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/gailcarriger">Facebook</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Links:<br />
</strong>The <a href="http://www.orbitbooks.net/soulless/">Soulless Victorian Dress-Up Doll </a>Game<br />
<a href="http://www.gailcarriger.com/DossierSoullessAlexia.pdf">Alexia’s Character Dossier</a> (PDF)<br />
The <a href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=63457918296&v=wall">Parasol Protectorate Facebook</a> Group<br />
<a href="http://mybookthemovie.blogspot.com/2009/09/gail-carrigers-soulless.html">My Book, The Movie</a> (Guest Blog)<br />
<a href="http://books-forlife.blogspot.com/2009/09/guest-post-gail-carriger-author-of.html">Book Girl Blodueuedd</a>- About Characterization (Guest Blog)<br />
<a href="http://strange-and-random-happenstance.blogspot.com/2009/09/finding-paranormal-home-in-victorian.html">Strange & Random Happenstance</a>- A Paranormal Home in Victorian London (Guest Blog)<br />
<a href="http://butterflybookreviews.blogspot.com/2009/09/guest-post-with-gail-carriger-author-of.html">Butterfly Book Review</a>- Historical Quirks (Guest Blog)<br />
<br />
<strong>Interviews:</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.greenabsinthiabookblog.com/2010/07/tea-and-gail-carriger_19.html">Scribbles & Stories</a><br />
<a href="http://blogs.chron.com/murderblog/2010/07/high_tea_with_gail_carriger.html">Murder By the Blog</a><br />
With <a href="http://gailcarriger.livejournal.com/116506.html">Characters Alexia Tarabotti & Jane True</a> (from <em>Tempest Rising</em> by Nicole Peeler)<br />
<a href="http://mysite.verizon.net/res89guj/id55.html">Watch the Skies</a><br />
<a href="http://www.rtbookreviews.com/content/gail-carriger-author-interview">RT Book Reviews </a><br />
<a href="http://blog2.natalieallan.co.uk/?p=34">Natalie Allen</a><br />
<a href="http://ghostinthemachinepodcast.com/?p=182">Ghost in the Machine</a> (podcast)<br />
<a href="http://isbw.murlafferty.com/2009/12/isbw-137-stop-thinkinggail-carriger-interview/">I Should Be Writing</a> (podcast)<br />
<a href="http://steampod.org/2009/05/interview-2-gail-carriger/">Steampod</a>- On Steampunk mostly (podcast)<br />
<a href="http://www.adamchristopher.co.uk/?p=1208">Writing Habits Special</a> (podcast)<br />
<a href="http://bookotron.com/agony/news/2010/04-26-10-podcast.htm#podcast042810">The Agony Column</a> (podcast)<br />
<a href="http://kbgbabbles.blogspot.com/2009/09/interview-with-gail-carriger.html">Babbling About Books</a><br />
<a href="http://thehidingspot.blogspot.com/2009/09/interview-gail-carriger-author-of.html">The Hiding Spot </a><br />
<a href="http://www.fantasticbookreview.com/2009/09/author-interview-gail-carriger.html">Fantastic Book Review </a><br />
<a href="http://jonathanmoeller.wordpress.com/2009/10/01/interview-with-gail-carriger-author-of-soulless/">Jonathan Moeller's Backup Blog</a><br />
<div><a href="http://cleverlyinked.com/2010/04/gail-carriger-interview-extra-entry-day.html">Cleverly Inked</a><br />
<br />
*If I missed yours, let me know<br />
<br />
<u>Source</u>: Won from <a href="http://bookizzle.blogspot.com/">Ramblings of a Bibliophile</a> (not active).<br />
<br />
Book Trailer:<br />
<object height="240" width="440"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lSlJRPktqlY?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lSlJRPktqlY?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="440" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
At BookExpo:<br />
<object height="244" width="325"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/w5oVDdYm-tk?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/w5oVDdYm-tk?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="325" height="244"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations</em></strong><br />
<strong>Wolf:</strong> Professor Lyall and Lord Maccon are both some of the werewolves in this book. Lyall travels in his wolf form a bit.<br />
<strong>Parasol:</strong> Alexia is awfully fond of her parasol.<br />
<strong>Ceiling:</strong> This could easily be Lord Akeldama’s ceiling. His home is just as elaborate as his clothes.<br />
<strong>Octopus:</strong> The scientists in this book seem to have a fascination with these creatures for some reason.<br />
<strong>Gail Carriger:</strong> I had to include one of the author’s publicity photos. Isn’t it great?!</span></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-27467026828314811052010-08-17T20:39:00.010-05:002011-02-14T00:12:23.900-06:00Under Da Sea<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAE7H2ZP38mMD2xzj_Q3gMAMVm9h6WpYpBAqfQ6837fSmi___ccsJF3xHAeJeyKdJYv96JHvNNqw-HOgKSohBAeCD0FsiSA0OXPVeZVvNJZQ1HKVkjUJg3WUxMvBMCupbCs30XFsO0791Z/s1600/fins-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506564372165143762" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAE7H2ZP38mMD2xzj_Q3gMAMVm9h6WpYpBAqfQ6837fSmi___ccsJF3xHAeJeyKdJYv96JHvNNqw-HOgKSohBAeCD0FsiSA0OXPVeZVvNJZQ1HKVkjUJg3WUxMvBMCupbCs30XFsO0791Z/s320/fins-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 212px;" /></a><em>Lily Sanderson has a secret, and it's not that she has a huge crush on gorgeous swimming god Brody Bennett, who makes her heart beat flipper-fast. Unrequited love is hard enough when you're a normal teenage girl, but when you're half human, half mermaid, like Lily, there's no such thing as a simple crush.<br />
<br />
Lily's mermaid identity is a secret that can't get out, since she's not just any mermaid-- she's a Thalassinian princess. When Lily found out three years ago that her mother was actually a human, she finally realized why she didn't feel quite at home in Thalassinia, and she's been living on land and going to Seaview High School ever since, hoping to find where she truly belongs. Sure, land has its problems-- like her obnoxious biker-boy neighbor, Quince Fletcher-- but it has that one major perk: Brody. The problem is, mermaids aren't really the casual dating type-- the instant they "bond," it's for life.<br />
<br />
When Lily's attempt to win Brody's love leads to a tsunami-sized case of mistake identity, she is in for a tidal wave of relationship drama, and she finds out, quick as a tailfin flick, that happily ever after never sails quite as smoothly as you planned.<br />
</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Forgive My Fins<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://www.teralynnchilds.com/">Tera Lynn Childs</a><br />
<strong>Series:</strong> Mermaids, Book 1<br />
<strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 7/20/10- 7/21/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> June 1, 2010<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> HarperTeen (HarperCollins)<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 293<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> YA-Fantasy, Romance<br />
<br />
Tera Lynn Childs; the RITA winning author of the <em>Oh. My. Gods</em> series (a YA series about a <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-evC63b7JkzNDLjU_Pi1jju_MKuKsLvBiPBG4FGwxPynqkLoAONI5ahxMq8Cz6qghLrmr7tW0rbQrAeUw7xX6-FtR7kHbgkZnQNNs2bUQVUcibYCJdlQnkULs5fbtEYntUwQGNUdAvBdL/s1600/Fins-Bimini+Road.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506564644311856770" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-evC63b7JkzNDLjU_Pi1jju_MKuKsLvBiPBG4FGwxPynqkLoAONI5ahxMq8Cz6qghLrmr7tW0rbQrAeUw7xX6-FtR7kHbgkZnQNNs2bUQVUcibYCJdlQnkULs5fbtEYntUwQGNUdAvBdL/s200/Fins-Bimini+Road.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 132px;" /></a>school of descendants of mythological Greek gods), has taken a break from Greek myths and tackled another type of mythical creature, the mermaid in <em>Forgive My Fins</em>. The author admitted to being slightly inspired by the movie <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/09/she-had-great-pair-of-fins.html">Splash</a></em> (the first mermaid movie she ever saw) and her love of water for the reasons why she wrote this book.<br />
<br />
This is a typical girl has a crush on boy A who never really notices her, while boy B has a crush on the girl and shows it by annoying her type of story. In this particular book, it just so happens that the girl is half-human, half-m<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ayvXGt0jUrRDzu6p35Uo7q_v8zRGb3M2wKFL-WToK35rZ3qKNLZzIvkzI8kn6n2hwnxtf_xfRag2YmOvM6w3G2vNyoPSmmuexZCdKC0DxgUKfVg_7nPrSWkjx4pmeDHlqlrvecwBZgbN/s1600/fins-SandDollar.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506564762400931170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ayvXGt0jUrRDzu6p35Uo7q_v8zRGb3M2wKFL-WToK35rZ3qKNLZzIvkzI8kn6n2hwnxtf_xfRag2YmOvM6w3G2vNyoPSmmuexZCdKC0DxgUKfVg_7nPrSWkjx4pmeDHlqlrvecwBZgbN/s200/fins-SandDollar.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 197px;" /></a>ermaid, and a princess at that. The romance in this story has been done a million times but Ms. Childs brings a fresh perspective to the tired high school drama with the interesting mermaid angle and lore. Childs says she didn’t do much research on mermaids for this book, she made most of it up, “In my mermaid world, they have eyes that glitter when they cry, can transfigure back and forth between mer and terraped (human) form at will, and have a mer mark on the back of their neck that matches the color of their tailfin. Making things up is half the fun!” The best part of the book is the underwater kingdom Thalassinia which was beautifully described, I did love all of the water settings and descriptions though.<br />
<br />
<em>Forgive My Fins</em> was the first mermaid story I’ve ever read and I thought i<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhkWLlOhSYCCWMsjVj19CpPsYX3K8VwGSoB_gnU46d-GaYHK7JDZFQH9J3a2UGAECIiSb6maakUX5xwgxLHBA2-lEaXaspTjZWnWpQan38IJqr7eYZWF8sS-swB7YJf-SGNaSczLIkzYaH/s1600/Fins-mermaid.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506564895714038258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhkWLlOhSYCCWMsjVj19CpPsYX3K8VwGSoB_gnU46d-GaYHK7JDZFQH9J3a2UGAECIiSb6maakUX5xwgxLHBA2-lEaXaspTjZWnWpQan38IJqr7eYZWF8sS-swB7YJf-SGNaSczLIkzYaH/s200/Fins-mermaid.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 151px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 198px;" /></a>t was a cute cotton candy kind of tale with a dash of sea slang (“son of a swordfish!”) and though very predictable, it still is a good story. The characters do seem younger than they are supposed to be however, well actually Lily does. I’m somewhat ambivalent about her because she’s a little annoying to be truthful. The real gem in this book is the character Quince who definitely “got more than he bargained for” when he kisses Lily. A sensitive bad boy, what more could you want? It was all the other characters I had a problem with. They weren’t bad, just not as developed as I would have liked so I’m hoping that they’ll be better in the sequel coming out next year tentatively titled <em>Fins Are Forever</em>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>We mermaids are a cowardly bunch. Keeping our existence a total secret makes cowardice pretty much a necessity. If we don’t flee fast enough at the first sign of a passing ship, we might end up on the cover of next week’s Flash Paper. We’re more of an escape-now-ask-questions-later kind of species.<br />
<br />
Merfolk are a pretty peaceful people, but that boy makes me wish I had free reign of Daddy’s trident for a good five minutes.<br />
<br />
I’d always been a little intrigued by humans and their culture-- how very Little Mermaid of me, I know-- but when I found out I was half human, the interest became more personal.<br />
<br />
He looks me right in the eye as he says, “Love is already the strongest magic in the world.”<br />
The laughter drains right out of me. It’s obvious that he truly believes this. He believes in the omnipotent nature of love. I never knew he was such a romantic.<br />
<br />
I laugh. Partly at his joke, but partly at the ridiculousness of this situation. I mean, how did I-- Thalassinian royal princess-- wind up bonded to a land lover who can’t swim and hates sushi? If ever there was a more unsuitable match, I haven’t seen one.</strong></blockquote><br />
<u>Mermaid Series</u><br />
1. Forgive My Fins (2010)<br />
2. Fins are Forever (2011)<br />
<br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> Water calms me. It's like chocolate or hot tea or dulce de leche ice cream. After a rotten day, I lock the bathroom door, fill Aunt Rachel's old-timey tub with steaming water and bath salts, and then sink into a world where my problems all melt away.<br />
<br />
<strong>Find Tera Lynn Childs Online:</strong><br />
<a href="http://teralynnchilds.blogspot.com/">Author’s Blog</a><br />
<a href="http://www.myspace.com/teralynnchilds">MySpace</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/teralynnchilds">Facebook </a><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1051591.Tera_Lynn_Childs">Goodreads</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/teralynnchilds">Twitter</a><br />
Group Blog: <a href="http://yawriters.blogspot.com/">Books, Boys, Buzz</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Interviews<br />
</strong><a href="http://butterflybookreviews.blogspot.com/2010/05/interview-with-tera-lynn-childs-author.html">The Book Butterfly</a><br />
<a href="http://allthingsurbanfantasy.blogspot.com/2010/06/psf-interview-guestblog-tera-lynn.html">All Things Urban Fantasy</a><br />
<div><a href="http://myoverstuffedbookshelf.blogspot.com/2010/07/interview-tera-lynn-childs.html"></a><a href="http://www.fantasticbookreview.com/2010/06/sensational-7-q-with-tera-lynn-childs.html">Fantastic Book Reviews</a><br />
<a href="http://myoverstuffedbookshelf.blogspot.com/2010/07/interview-tera-lynn-childs.html">My Overstuffed Bookshelf</a><br />
<a href="http://supernaturalsummer.com/2010/07/splashing-away-the-summer/">Supernatural Summer</a> (Guest Post)<br />
<a href="http://visionquestfail.blogspot.com/2010/07/forgive-my-fins-guest-post-swag.html">Vision Quest Fail</a> (Guest Post)<br />
<a href="http://teralynnchilds.blogspot.com/2010/06/ask-characters.html">Author’s Blog</a> (Characters Interview)<br />
Meet <a href="http://teralynnchilds.blogspot.com/2010/05/meet-lily.html">Lily</a>, <a href="http://teralynnchilds.blogspot.com/2010/06/meet-quince.html">Quince</a>, <a href="http://teralynnchilds.blogspot.com/2010/06/meet-brody.html">Brody</a>, <a href="http://teralynnchilds.blogspot.com/2010/06/meet-shannen.html">Shannen</a>, & <a href="http://teralynnchilds.blogspot.com/2010/06/meet-dosinia.html">Dosinia</a><br />
<a href="http://podcast.com/episode/58954703/79417/">YA Literature Review</a> (podcast)<br />
<a href="http://21pages.x10hosting.com/2010/08/guest-post-giveaway-with-tera-lynn-childs/">21 Pages</a> (Guest Blog)<br />
<br />
<u>Source</u>: Courtesy of author from<a href="http://yawriters.blogspot.com/"> Books, Boys, Buzz blog</a>, autographed!<br />
<br />
Author at a Signing:<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/fPofKGrSlyk?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/fPofKGrSlyk?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations</em></strong><br />
<strong>Bimini Road:</strong> The main gate of Thalassinia<br />
<strong>Blue Sand Dollar:</strong> A gift Quince receives<br />
<strong>Mermaid:</strong> Self-explanatory</span></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-15367422428876216422010-08-14T02:33:00.012-05:002011-02-14T00:18:10.333-06:00Marmee Noir is Back<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqi778jNHI31CCH2BKQnDhJ_RSfk5J5Rl2lgbLqaXwb3AWqRutEPyK2dDZ_z8fStwFvQ1JmJn2scqC-xBGWaBWYB1-Q_bgRRB4XuaNy9cE9CcWHdgiUf-_OTCi_E4iVf93O7kCEP9TcQWm/s1600/Bullet-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505170872365990898" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqi778jNHI31CCH2BKQnDhJ_RSfk5J5Rl2lgbLqaXwb3AWqRutEPyK2dDZ_z8fStwFvQ1JmJn2scqC-xBGWaBWYB1-Q_bgRRB4XuaNy9cE9CcWHdgiUf-_OTCi_E4iVf93O7kCEP9TcQWm/s320/Bullet-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 212px;" /></a><em>The music came back up and the next group of little girls, slightly older, came out. There was a lot of that in the next hour and change. I liked dance, and it was no reflection on the kids, but my will to live began to seep away on about the fifth group of sequined children...<br />
<br />
Anita Blake is back in St. Louis and trying to live a normal life-as normal as possible for someone who is a legal vampire executioner and a U. S. Marshal. There are lovers, friends and their children, school programs to attend. In the midst of all the ordinary happiness a vampire from Anita's past reaches out. She was supposed to be dead, killed in an explosion, but the Mother of All Darkness is the first vampire, their dark creator. It's hard to kill a god. This dark goddess has reached out to her here-in St. Louis, home of everyone Anita loves most. The Mother of All Darkness has decided she has to act now or never, to control Anita, and all the vampires in America.<br />
<br />
The Mother of All Darkness believes that the triumvirate created by master vampire Jean-Claude with Anita and the werewolf Richard Zeeman has enough power for her to regain a body and to immigrate to the New World. But the body she wants to possess is already taken. Anita is about to learn a whole new meaning to sharing her body, one that has nothing to do with the bedroom. And if the Mother of All Darkness can't succeed in taking over Anita's body for herself, she means to see that no one else has the use of it, ever again. Even Belle Morte, not always a friend to Anita, has sent word: "Run if you can..."</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Bullet<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/">Laurell K. Hamilton</a><br />
<strong>Series:</strong> Anita Blake, Book 19<br />
<strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 7/17/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> June 1, 2010<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> Berkley Publishing (Penguin)<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 356<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Mystery, Urban Fantasy-Romance<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%;">SPOILER ALERT</span><br />
<br />
Set a year after the previous book <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/raising-dead-for-bad-reasons.html">Flirt</a></em> (though it was published only a few months prior), Laurell K. Hamilton’s nineteenth book in her Anita Blake series <em>Bullet </em>has Anita finally getting her house in order... or would that be men in order? Everyone from Asher- who finally stands up for himself- to Haven (Cookie Monster) the werelion lets their feelings and demands be known. Even Richard is finally coming around thanks to all the therapy he’s had since we last saw him in <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/another-action-packed-adventure-for.html">The Harlequin</a></em>. There is a whole lot of sex in <em>Bullet </em>and at times the main plot thread does get pushed aside for it, but since Anita, <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Jmt1fruCqeuwvKNrnDmSOwd4YR-8nXJAhdcBoCAKcGXkr4rtvjtJxO_hLZZEoBvObumw-P1i4kCrevHy3Q77SJWeX3xjm5ByLUzYD2Vq_K5cWe5no2L5j26MFc-QJT358PZ01rDwQCQQ/s1600/Bullet-tigers.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505170989779431842" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Jmt1fruCqeuwvKNrnDmSOwd4YR-8nXJAhdcBoCAKcGXkr4rtvjtJxO_hLZZEoBvObumw-P1i4kCrevHy3Q77SJWeX3xjm5ByLUzYD2Vq_K5cWe5no2L5j26MFc-QJT358PZ01rDwQCQQ/s200/Bullet-tigers.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 196px;" /></a>Jean-Claude, Richard are trying to make their triumvirate “into a cohesive whole” and sex is their main power then it does make sense.<br />
<br />
Marmee Noir has been a Big Bad since her very first appearance in <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/metaphysical-beasts-pregnancy-scare.html"><em>Danse Macabre</em> </a>but it wasn’t until she lost her earthly shell in <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/serial-killer-in-sin-city.html"><em>Skin Trade</em> </a>that she truly became dangerous. Like the First Evil on Buffy level of dangerous. When the Council came to town in <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/vampire-council-and-inferno.html">Burnt Offerings</a></em>, there was talk that Jean-Claude was trying to set up his own council in America when he wasn’t at all. Now because Mommie Dearest has taken over a good bit of the European council, times are a changing!<br />
<br />
Anita only leaves the Circus once during the entire the book and that was at the beginning but it‘s one of the best scenes in the book. It shows how much Nathaniel and Jason have grown up (or “growing into themselves”) and what happened to Monica Vespucci and her baby that she was pregnant with in <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/werewolves-and-assassination-attempts.html">The Killing Dance</a></em>. He’s now three years old! It’s almost startling to realize how much everyone has grown up since <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/anita-blakes-first-book.html"><em>Guilty Pleasures</em> </a>or the various books they were introduced in. One character that hasn’t grown up is Haven also known as Cookie Monster. This was the last book he’s in and though I always thought he was a neat character, he wasn’t a good guy and he just didn’t fit in Anita’s life as he wanted to. While I’m happy that almost all of the guys are<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgODaV4xxR4drR26UqOLM-s9f9GtAC-P3_w9q4PXds1Imp8ZqqgrUEPp5Dq0uHx63HENxsQOPyACmH-CRm5_8KvFhkS0ztxVrx15v3HNGSvLTjSjXT84b2nJ2CRMHC3jbWgaOVA5qr4of8D/s1600/Bullet-lion.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505171129536559938" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgODaV4xxR4drR26UqOLM-s9f9GtAC-P3_w9q4PXds1Imp8ZqqgrUEPp5Dq0uHx63HENxsQOPyACmH-CRm5_8KvFhkS0ztxVrx15v3HNGSvLTjSjXT84b2nJ2CRMHC3jbWgaOVA5qr4of8D/s200/Bullet-lion.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 176px;" /></a> making an effort to work together now, especially Richard since he’s no longer hindering the triumvirate too much, he still gets on my nerves too.<br />
<br />
With Crispin and Domino (the weretigers from <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/10/anita-jason-take-trip.html"><em>Blood Noir</em> </a>and <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/serial-killer-in-sin-city.html">Skin Trade</a></em>) teaching the other shifters how to calm their beasts so they don’t miscarry, suddenly babies are a possibility for many of the shifters. It’s brought up a lot of issues for a lot of them. I am curious to see if Anita will ever get pregnant (I’m assuming Nathaniel will be the father if it does ever happen) since there’s already been one pregnancy scare in the series but since Hamilton already went down that road with her Meredith Gentry series, I’m not going to hold my breath. What I’m most looking forward to is how the author will deal with all of America’s vampires and their politics once Jean-Claude starts forming that council. Ms. Hamilton is currently hard at work writing the twentieth book in this series.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>“Funny how it’s never your fault when you have to have sex with all these men, Anita,” and with that she walked away. She walked away with the proverbial knife stuck deep and hard right through my heart. Nothing cuts deeper than when another person says exactly what you’re afraid to say out loud.<br />
<br />
If I had ever wanted to give in to hysterics, it was then. How do you fight something with no body to kill? How do you fight something that can possess the most powerful vampires in the world and use them like puppets? How the fuck does anyone fight something like that?<br />
<br />
Richard held out his hand, and after a moment of hesitation Jean-Claude took it. I laid my hand on top of theirs, and all I could think was, <em>Is this how revolutions begin</em>? Not with a proclamation or a riot, but with a few people in a room somewhere with their hands clasped and a purpose. We were trying to save our country. I was betting the other Masters of the City wouldn’t believe we were saving anything but ourselves, and <em>patriot</em> wouldn’t be what they called us. No, <em>motherfucking bastards</em>, more like.<br />
<br />
I wasn’t monogamous, that was okay, but there’s not being monogamous and there’s having so many men in your life that you can’t possibly do justice to any of them. I was either at that point, or perilously close, and now we were going to add more. It sounded like a bad idea to me.<br />
</strong></blockquote><br />
<u>Anita Blake Series</u><br />
1. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/anita-blakes-first-book.html">Guilty Pleasures </a>(1993)<br />
2. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/killer-zombie-on-loose.html">The Laughing Corpse</a> (1994)<br />
3. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/into-dark-big-top.html">Circus of the Damned</a> (1995)<br />
4. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/shifter-community-is-in-trouble.html">The Lunatic Café</a> (1996)<br />
5. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/monsters-vampires-and-faeries.html">Bloody Bones </a>(1996)<br />
6. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/werewolves-and-assassination-attempts.html">The Killing Dance</a> (1997)<br />
7. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/vampire-council-and-inferno.html">Burnt Offerings </a>(1998)<br />
8. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/werewolf-politics-and-growing-powers.html">Blue Moon</a> (1998)<br />
9. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/gods-and-grisly-murders.html">Obsidian Butterfly</a> (2000)<br />
10. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-chapter-in-anitas-life.html">Narcissus in Chains </a>(2001)<br />
11. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/vampire-politics-are-not-fun.html">Cerulean Sins</a> (2003)<br />
12. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/sex-and-serial-killers.html">Incubus Dreams</a> (2004)<br />
13. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/nimir-raj-and-nimir-ra-are-out-of-town.html">Micah</a> (2006)<br />
14. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/metaphysical-beasts-pregnancy-scare.html">Danse Macabre</a> (2006)<br />
15. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/another-action-packed-adventure-for.html">The Harlequin</a> (2007)<br />
16. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/10/anita-jason-take-trip.html">Blood Noir</a> (2008)<br />
17. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/serial-killer-in-sin-city.html">Skin Trade </a>(2009)<br />
18. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/raising-dead-for-bad-reasons.html">Flirt</a> (2010)<br />
19. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/marmee-noir-is-back.html">Bullet</a> (2010)<br />
<div>20. Hit List (2011)<br />
<br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> I was worming my way through a mass of parents and children with a tiny clown hat clutched in one hand. In my navy blue skirt suit I looked like a dozen other mothers who had had to come straight from work to the dance recital. My hair was a little curly and little too black for all the blond mothers, but no one gave me a second glance. The one saving grace as I threaded my way through the crowd of parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and siblings was that I wasn’t one of the parents. I was just here as moral support and last-minute costume rescuer. It was just Monica Vespucci’s style to leave par of her son’s costume at her house and need an emergency save. Micah and I had been running late with client meetings so we go to ride to the rescue, and now since the vast majority of the performers were female I was the only one safe to go backstage without scandalizing the mothers. What did little girls who only had male relatives do at things like this? My dad would have been at a loss.<br />
<br />
<strong>Find Laurell K. Hamilton Online:</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/">Official Site </a><br />
<a href="http://blog.laurellkhamilton.org/index.php/blog/">Blog </a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Laurell-K-Hamilton/136225597631?ref=search&sid=842417719.2607476756..1">Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/LKHamilton">Twitter </a><br />
<br />
<strong>Links</strong><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurell_K._Hamilton">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullet_(novel)">Book Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.anitablakewiki.com/">Anita Blake Wiki </a><br />
<a href="http://blog.laurellkhamilton.org/index.php/site/comments/whats_the_book_about1">Author's Blog Post</a> on Bullet<br />
<a href="http://ladytinksblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/cover-contemplation.html">My Post </a>on Bullet Covers<br />
<br />
<strong>Interviews<br />
</strong><a href="http://www.the-trades.com/article.php?id=11903"></a><a href="http://www.the-trades.com/article.php?id=11903">The Trades</a><br />
<a href="http://shelf-life.ew.com/2010/06/01/qa-anita-blake-vampire-hunter-author-laurell-k-hamilton/">Q&A with EW</a><br />
<br />
Bullet Promotion on New Day:<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/aosuZ4CUrXM?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/aosuZ4CUrXM?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
LKH Bullet Tour:<br />
<object height="285" width="380"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/p/1D138F0264CA2F19?hl=en_US&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/p/1D138F0264CA2F19?hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="380" height="285" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<u>Source</u>: From personal collection, courtesy of an Amazon GC from <a href="http://www.galtime.com/">GALtime</a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations</em></strong><br />
<strong>Tiger:</strong> The Las Vegas weretigers have rallied the other tigers to Anita so she can bring them into their power among other things.<br />
<strong>Lion:</strong> Anita and the others have issues with the werelions in this book.</span></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-21230956857183111232010-08-12T12:47:00.012-05:002011-02-14T00:20:24.135-06:00Who's Salt?<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQLBRr_39w8QKbiuZu2adw7pRaR4OnqzlkeTx7AjzB-iYfWG1Vh5hP2DRUB5Khxa0s1loezqJDhVLhdBzebgOsfVIubFeVWzEvX8rAtl72f1ieTEuibwbaR-XPO0noy2r3w1oMSdT-OEV_/s1600/Salt-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504583240884810866" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQLBRr_39w8QKbiuZu2adw7pRaR4OnqzlkeTx7AjzB-iYfWG1Vh5hP2DRUB5Khxa0s1loezqJDhVLhdBzebgOsfVIubFeVWzEvX8rAtl72f1ieTEuibwbaR-XPO0noy2r3w1oMSdT-OEV_/s320/Salt-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 215px;" /></a><em>Angelina Jolie stars in Salt, a contemporary action thriller from Columbia Pictures. As a CIA officer, Evelyn Salt (Jolie) swore an oath to duty, honor and country. Her loyalty will be tested when a defector accuses her of being a Russian spy. Salt goes on the run, using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative to elude capture. Salt's efforts to prove her innocence only serve to cast doubt on her motives, as the hunt to uncover the truth behind her identity continues and the question remains: "Who Is Salt?"</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Salt<br />
<strong>Release:</strong> July 23, 2010<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Action<br />
<strong>MPAA Rating:</strong> PG-13<br />
<strong>Writer:</strong> Kurt Wimmer & Brian Helgleland<br />
<strong>Director:</strong> Phillip Noyce<br />
<strong>Music By:</strong> James Newton Howard<br />
<strong>Produced By:</strong> Lorenzo di Bonaventura & Sunil Perkash<br />
<strong>Distributed By:</strong> Columbia Pictures<br />
<strong>Run Time:</strong> 100 minutes<br />
<strong><a href="http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/salt/">Official Site</a></strong><br />
<br />
Angelina Jolie has made several action films over the years but in her latest film, she gets to play a character named Evelyn Salt who is nearly the female equivalent of <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/01/007s-first-appearance.html">James Bond</a> or <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/bourne-trilogy.html">Jason Bourne</a>. <em>Salt</em> is a film that is a somewhat throwback to the era when a film about spies just ha<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt9OVPqchTNyNu3CvCJNxX2C7YuZPaxaBlaPLtpLiTaVG0FA6mAqleGf44xMqh0u6FaPr2YjBPTprchhaqrgDAc8E6JH6p8mne3nY22qabiZOIJjHhxuN2rIAzNSMnD1V_no_iM4daWkVw/s1600/Salt-innocent.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504583502616471250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt9OVPqchTNyNu3CvCJNxX2C7YuZPaxaBlaPLtpLiTaVG0FA6mAqleGf44xMqh0u6FaPr2YjBPTprchhaqrgDAc8E6JH6p8mne3nY22qabiZOIJjHhxuN2rIAzNSMnD1V_no_iM4daWkVw/s200/Salt-innocent.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 160px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>d to be tied to the Russians somehow but while it has that feel and even some of the plot devices of those earlier spy films, <em>Salt</em> does manage to seem like it could happen at any time. Matter of fact, the idea of deeply buried sleeper agents like the ones in the film that are only waiting for the signal to attack is actually a real theory within the CIA though some do dismiss it as a merely a myth. However, a real spy ring did emerge that coincided with the release of<em> Salt</em> remarkably enough.<br />
<br />
With so many films similar to this one out there, I’m pleased that someone finally decided to do one with a woman instead of a man as the main character. What’s interesting is that it was originally w<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmvSPHyG2xXhSHgBG_Km3U67mfIQkkiQt7Lw8SXae81RH2qUeBwKx93pc_3ThVM4U_MshpxmSX5PptL6spWrMM6hkzEgxcJQDlib44fwuF0fLcLcrXE4azZ7wuXY5nbD-hGM_CycMox66/s1600/Salt-motorcycle.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504583632437304290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmvSPHyG2xXhSHgBG_Km3U67mfIQkkiQt7Lw8SXae81RH2qUeBwKx93pc_3ThVM4U_MshpxmSX5PptL6spWrMM6hkzEgxcJQDlib44fwuF0fLcLcrXE4azZ7wuXY5nbD-hGM_CycMox66/s200/Salt-motorcycle.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 160px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>ritten with a male in mind (Tom Cruise was actually approached for the role) and where that would have been an okay summer popcorn flick (though maybe too much in the same vein as the <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/01/three-mission-impossibles.html">Mission Impossible</a></em> movies), the fact that the main character is female in a what is normally a male role makes a difference. “Females in those films rely on being female but we wanted to ignore that. She’s just Salt. It’s not about being a female and she certainly doesn’t use her sexuality to get anything in the film,” Ms. Jolie said in an interview.<br />
<br />
The main character in this film may be Evelyn Salt but she does <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiehG9N-ch_haXEC4XU-4WTmyHd3cqFCy1hYD7sKhrmJswNst3-JIWmXXim-aY1t2J6i9klQ-f2JL7DnF8AMiKYRsUg5pg1NiK-1CrWjJOxV-4sy-jVhJH37SnbedZNYOFyufhMD8enY8qi/s1600/Salt-salt.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504583825772180130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiehG9N-ch_haXEC4XU-4WTmyHd3cqFCy1hYD7sKhrmJswNst3-JIWmXXim-aY1t2J6i9klQ-f2JL7DnF8AMiKYRsUg5pg1NiK-1CrWjJOxV-4sy-jVhJH37SnbedZNYOFyufhMD8enY8qi/s200/Salt-salt.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 160px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>have a few secondary characters that help move the film along such as Liev Schreiber who plays Ted Winter, Evelyn Salt’s boss and friend and Chiwetel Ejiofor who plays Peabody the agent who is determined to bring her down. While both of these characters were interesting enough that I actually remember their names, I still think that it was Jolie who carried this film on her own shapely shoulders. Surprisingly enough, <em>Salt</em> wasn’t about her looking pretty while doing it and for the most part she truly wasn’t as elegant as she is often portrayed either.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkFunFQBIzDLXq_m68a6ue4UcuDyIhdjkmB1XL80hnR8RfAh3QGrxv-VFGb5L2z2_VrwPQPxrOs5D-3mWO2fprrrilCDnXTJFjznFraWi36CpwG_ZoSGVq_I1qJ04m8Rd9tSV9CPPFe7am/s1600/Salt-cops.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504584032240225666" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkFunFQBIzDLXq_m68a6ue4UcuDyIhdjkmB1XL80hnR8RfAh3QGrxv-VFGb5L2z2_VrwPQPxrOs5D-3mWO2fprrrilCDnXTJFjznFraWi36CpwG_ZoSGVq_I1qJ04m8Rd9tSV9CPPFe7am/s200/Salt-cops.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 160px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
Jolie actually did as much of her own stunts as possible (99% according to her stunt director Simon Crane) and that kept the stunts more plausible than many action films of today. The director said in an interview that he would have been more comfortable if Jolie would have done some of the stunts blue screen. ''She was often suspended up to 10 stories high and she'd leap from vehicle to vehicle at high speeds. She doesn't have to do it, but she has absolutely no fear. Usually when an actor becomes more and more successful, they play it safe. But that's not Angelina Jolie.'' She was even injured during one the stunts for this film and now has a scar from it.<br />
<br />
Sony has made it known that they are hoping for <em>Salt</em> to be their next big spy-film f<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2eRvbKvxGLUwbnlSGENfABTCgrZIKgDFbSCOGWwwLqChg5LkBNMhlEAbI4_mdQCSDM3I3-oW9ta6-TJW6rZit7Qd4oTVaUQz-90lt0x3rVxzG95Nl-uxa4G8K7ibhppldGolSOH0VvtJM/s1600/Salt-gun.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504584403117411906" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2eRvbKvxGLUwbnlSGENfABTCgrZIKgDFbSCOGWwwLqChg5LkBNMhlEAbI4_mdQCSDM3I3-oW9ta6-TJW6rZit7Qd4oTVaUQz-90lt0x3rVxzG95Nl-uxa4G8K7ibhppldGolSOH0VvtJM/s200/Salt-gun.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 160px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>ranchise and I have to say that I fully endorse that idea. No, this wasn’t the best spy movie I’ve ever seen but it’s one of the few where a woman is the main character in an action themed film and while I wasn’t blown away by the movie, I did enjoy the performances, especially Salt since she threw herself so willingly into the role. For that fact alone, I hope that there will be a sequel. There is a bit of suspension of belief here and there in the movie such as how Ms. Evelyn Salt never manages to be badly injured while she’s jumping from truck to truck on the highway, climbing the side of a building, blowing stuff up, etc but despite the plot holes throughout the film, I did like<em> Salt</em>.<br />
<br />
<strong>Find Salt Online<br />
</strong><a href="http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/salt/">Official Site </a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_(film)">Wikipedia </a><br />
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0944835/">Imdb.com </a><br />
<a href="http://www.reelzchannel.com/movie/276575/salt">ReelzChannel </a><br />
<a href="http://www.moviefone.com/movie/salt/37107/main">Moviefone</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Links<br />
</strong><a href="http://www.dayxexists.com/site/">Day X Exists Salt Game </a><br />
<a href="http://angelinajoliesite.blogspot.com/search?q=salt">Angelina Jolie Blog</a> with links to Salt articles<br />
<a href="http://www.team-jolie.com/?s=salt">Team Jolie Fansite</a><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/WhoIsSalt">Who is Salt</a> YouTube Channel<br />
<br />
<strong>Interviews<br />
</strong><a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20363774,00.html">Entertainment Weekly</a>-Angelina Jolie & director Phillip Noyce<br />
<a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20404187,00.html">Entertainment Weekly</a>-Liev Schreiber<br />
<a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1638075/20100429/story.jhtml">MTV</a>-Lorenzo di Bonaventura (producer)<br />
<a href="http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28257:a-pinch-of-salt-and-a-generous-dash-of-angelina-jolie&catid=32:life&Itemid=68">Business Mirror</a>- Angelina Jolie<br />
<a href="http://www.makingof.com/posts/watch/2074/simon-crane-discusses-the-stunts-of-salt">Making Of</a>- Simon Crane (video)<br />
<a href="http://www.examiner.com/x-14380-Celebrity-Fitness-and-Health-Examiner~y2010m7d24-Angelina-Jolie-has-a-sprinters-run-says-Salt-costar-Liev-Schreiber">Examiner</a>- Liev Schreiber<br />
<a href="http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/268706/angelina-jolie-i-do-spiders-i-have-eaten-some-my-days-cambodia">MB</a>- Angelina Jolie and director Phillip Noyce<br />
<a href="http://filmreviewonline.com/2010/07/23/salt-chiwetel-ejiofor-on-the-spy-game/">Film Review Online</a>- Chiwetel Ejiofor<br />
<a href="http://www.bvonmovies.com/2010/07/19/angelina-jolie-chiwetel-ejiofor-talk-salt/">Black Voices</a>- Angelina Jolie & Chiwetel Ejiofor<br />
<br />
Trailer<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LbkQTB-OJsk?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LbkQTB-OJsk?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
At Comic Con:<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1rpA_7pSAto?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1rpA_7pSAto?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
Featurette:<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ka2VJPHbRqg?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ka2VJPHbRqg?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<strong><em><u>Related Reviews</u><br />
</em>Liev Schreiber<br />
</strong><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/dont-forget-rules.html">Scream</a><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/its-time-to-scream-again.html">Scream 2</a><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/10/all-bets-are-off-in-last-chapter.html">Scream 3</a><br />
<strong>Angelina Jolie</strong><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/choosing-your-destiny.html">Wanted </a><br />
<a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2009/01/serial-killer-vs-forensic-genius.html">The Bone Collector</a>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-51119010854347877002010-08-07T13:24:00.010-05:002011-02-14T00:21:40.705-06:00Raising the Dead for Bad Reasons<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOQ4sO4mEbKtr96LSAy_ycbvcoaDMYw5FslaBihlX87hM_0oGTmFcnAoPH7WkCakqd5jM0FWfd6ChZ3JknCtJlHJbXn8LyRN3VFq5s08nhy8gQU1nRD91E2bFEax140YjG2ctHS6CPSprk/s1600/flirt-main.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502741064481640130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOQ4sO4mEbKtr96LSAy_ycbvcoaDMYw5FslaBihlX87hM_0oGTmFcnAoPH7WkCakqd5jM0FWfd6ChZ3JknCtJlHJbXn8LyRN3VFq5s08nhy8gQU1nRD91E2bFEax140YjG2ctHS6CPSprk/s320/flirt-main.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 212px;" /></a><em>“I’ve earned my reputation, but if you really did your research on me then you also know that I don’t raise zombies for kicks, or thrill seekers, or tormented relatives unless they have a plan.”<br />
<br />
When Anita Blake meets with prospective client Tony Bennington, who is desperate to have her reanimate his recently deceased wife, she is full of sympathy of his loss. Anita knows something about love, and she knows everything about loss. But what she also knows, though Tony Bennington seems unwilling to be convinced, is that the thing she can do as a necromancer isn’t the miracle he thinks he needs. The creature that Anita could coerce to step out of the late Mrs. Bennington’s grave would not be the lovely Mrs. Bennington. Not really. And not for long.<br />
<br />
Anita has been relaxing just a bit with the men in her own life. The affectionate warmth of being with them brings out something softer in her, a sense of safety she can almost trust. They do love her; that part is forever and for sure. But flirting with feeling safe is a dangerous thing…</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Flirt<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/">Laurell K. Hamilton</a><br />
<strong>Series:</strong> Anita Blake, Book 18<br />
<strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 7/17/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> February 2, 2010<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> Berkley Publishing (Penguin)<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 171<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Mystery, Urban Fantasy-Romance<br />
<br />
The eighteenth book and second shortest book (<em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/nimir-raj-and-nimir-ra-are-out-of-town.html">Micah</a></em> is the shortest) in her Anita Blake series, Laurell K. Hamilton goes back to the root of what made this series so popular with <em>Flirt</em>. A lot of flirting happens in this book- hence the title- some casual, some not-so-casual, and some that can be downright deadly. With no zombie raisings for the last couple of books, it’s great to see Anita back to doing what she does best, raising the dead. However, she finds out fairly quickly that it’s not too much safer than any of her other work, especially with her having so many men in her life that can be <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Lu_eG3msdQ4qNWPyjtb4gdPye-pxWcspwRUwzmxn156Ura9LnQUhAN3S4JjiYJ5Usq0uu1aNC-LJuACi-h0kwLL_99z2CoOXTzMPp4JS2DWXsnQFt04R19J_5DDFC1xn28JlZHdLq1hp/s1600/flirt-cemetary.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502741350927229602" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Lu_eG3msdQ4qNWPyjtb4gdPye-pxWcspwRUwzmxn156Ura9LnQUhAN3S4JjiYJ5Usq0uu1aNC-LJuACi-h0kwLL_99z2CoOXTzMPp4JS2DWXsnQFt04R19J_5DDFC1xn28JlZHdLq1hp/s200/flirt-cemetary.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 125px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>liabilities.<br />
<br />
Ms. Hamilton said that <em>Flirt</em> was inspired by an incident with friends at a diner. She and her husband went to a party at a friend’s house that she had to fly to (like Anita, Ms. Hamilton is afraid of flying) and met the writer for <a href="http://thedevilspanties.com/">The Devil’s Panties</a>. Ms. Hamilton said she realized that “here were two artists experiencing the same weekend, but taking entirely different things away from it.” While Jennie Breeden (the webcomic author) seemed to walk through a world that was “brighter, happier, even funnier,” Hamilton experienced a version that was “darker, more overtly sexual, even aberrant, violent, sometimes violently sexy, and an innocent moment turned into a potential for murder and horror in [her] head.” Ms. Hamilton claimed that this was an eye-opening experience and helped her lighten up somewhat so that when she was out to lunch with the same friends later on (without Breeden), the scene in the book in the diner with the waiter, Nathaniel, and Anita occurred in real life. She said as she was leaving, “If Jennie were here she’d turn this into a funny, charming comic strip, but if I ever used it as an idea, it would all go horribly wrong. There would be violence, or violent sex, or both, and a high body count.” Well, it didn’t go wrong but it did lead to those things eventually and this one incident was what inspired her to write <em>Flirt</em>.<br />
<br />
Again, like <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/serial-killer-in-sin-city.html">Skin Trade</a></em>, this book is more plot driven than the last two books and less about the sex, however because Anita is practically a succubus now it does crop up. I found it interesting because <em>Flirt</em> seems more like the earlier books in this series which I’ve always loved (the later ones are good but I tend to not enjoy those as much) but Anita does collect a new man in this book, he’s a werelion. Not sure how that will effect Haven (Cookie Monster) yet. I really like him but it doesn’t seem like Anita does very much. There are actually no vampires in this one but of course, the<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgL7-I9vWWjKGnXn17jZe6MVzJjOhLnvEgIp2_yZa3mlfyFeSkHr7aOamKWjmUuBaO8XZ4a0yxOFQae9rLyy6xXlhJVSoTvYS7T-JidGCWlsMsi8u294b1UXh8sDMTYus38dw3ObFKH7un/s1600/Flirt-lioness.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502741504990438018" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgL7-I9vWWjKGnXn17jZe6MVzJjOhLnvEgIp2_yZa3mlfyFeSkHr7aOamKWjmUuBaO8XZ4a0yxOFQae9rLyy6xXlhJVSoTvYS7T-JidGCWlsMsi8u294b1UXh8sDMTYus38dw3ObFKH7un/s200/Flirt-lioness.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 133px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>y are mentioned however, it was very refreshing to not have an Anita Blake story that wasn’t cluttered with all of her men.<br />
<br />
This was a fairly quick read that the author wrote at the same time as one of her Merry books <em>Divine Misdemeanors</em>. Though the next book <em>Bullet</em> was released on months after this one, there is a year between them so we’ll see how well everyone has adjusted to everything by then. So in <em>Flirt</em> there are "new bad guys, new werelions, romance, flirting, fighting, sex, violence, preternatural psychics, and zombies." We also learn just how far will Anita go to save herself and those she loves in this book. Sometimes I think this series has gone on long enough and then Ms. Hamilton pulls something like <em>Flirt</em> out of her hat and it renews my faith in her and her lovely characters.<br />
<br />
<em>Note: A short comic strip appears in the back Flirt by the writer Jennie Breeden for the webcomic <a href="http://thedevilspanties.com/">The Devil’s Panties</a> illustrating the inspiration scene mentioned above.<br />
</em><br />
<em><br />
</em><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>“If I could raise her from the dead for real for you, maybe I would. I won’t debate the whole religious/philosophical problem with you, but the truth is that even I can’t do what you want. I raise zombies, Mr. Bennington, and that is not the same thing as resurrection of the dead. I’m good, maybe the best there is in the business, but I’m not that good. No one is.”<br />
<br />
Seemed this was my week for people wanting my very “alive” zombies for very bad purposes.<br />
<br />
I was remembering why I didn’t flirt for fun-- because I didn’t know how. I could flirt with intent of dating or sex, but I sucked at casual flirting. Shit.<br />
<br />
Hope was a bad friend when men with guns have you. But my lioness and their lions lusted after each other, sort of. Lust I trusted. Hope will lie to you, but lust is what it is; it never lies. Hope would keep me hoping, but lust might be a weapon I could use to divide them. Divide and conquer has been a strategy for thousands of years; there’s a reason for that.<br />
<br />
“I watched them comfort you, and then watched you flirt with the waiter. You wouldn’t give me back my flirt, so I took yours, and if you take my Ilsa away from me again, I will take your men away from you forever.”</strong></blockquote><br />
<u>Anita Blake Series</u><br />
1. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/anita-blakes-first-book.html">Guilty Pleasures</a> (1993)<br />
2. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/killer-zombie-on-loose.html">The Laughing Corpse</a> (1994)<br />
3. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/into-dark-big-top.html">Circus of the Damned</a> (1995)<br />
4. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/shifter-community-is-in-trouble.html">The Lunatic Café </a>(1996)<br />
5. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/monsters-vampires-and-faeries.html">Bloody Bones </a>(1996)<br />
6. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/werewolves-and-assassination-attempts.html">The Killing Dance </a>(1997)<br />
7. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/vampire-council-and-inferno.html">Burnt Offerings</a> (1998)<br />
8. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/werewolf-politics-and-growing-powers.html">Blue Moon</a> (1998)<br />
9. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/gods-and-grisly-murders.html">Obsidian Butterfly</a> (2000)<br />
10. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-chapter-in-anitas-life.html">Narcissus in Chains</a> (2001)<br />
11. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/vampire-politics-are-not-fun.html">Cerulean Sins</a> (2003)<br />
12. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/sex-and-serial-killers.html">Incubus Dreams</a> (2004)<br />
13. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/nimir-raj-and-nimir-ra-are-out-of-town.html">Micah</a> (2006)<br />
14. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/metaphysical-beasts-pregnancy-scare.html">Danse Macabre</a> (2006)<br />
15. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/another-action-packed-adventure-for.html">The Harlequin</a> (2007)<br />
16. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/10/anita-jason-take-trip.html">Blood Noir</a> (2008)<br />
17. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/serial-killer-in-sin-city.html">Skin Trade</a> (2009)<br />
18. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/raising-dead-for-bad-reasons.html">Flirt </a>(2010)<br />
19. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/marmee-noir-is-back.html">Bullet</a> (2010)<br />
<div>20. Hit List (2011)<br />
<br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> “I want you to raise my wife from the dead, Ms. Blake,” Tony Bennington said, in a voice that matched the expensive suit and the flash of the Rolex on his right wrist. It probably meant he was a lefty. Not that his handedness mattered, but you learn to notice primary hands when people try to kill you on a semiregular basis.<br />
<br />
<strong>Find Laurell K. Hamilton Online</strong><br />
<a href="http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/">Official Site </a><br />
<a href="http://blog.laurellkhamilton.org/index.php/blog/">Blog </a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Laurell-K-Hamilton/136225597631?ref=search&sid=842417719.2607476756..1">Facebook </a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/LKHamilton">Twitter</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Links</strong><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurell_K._Hamilton">Author Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flirt_(novella)">Book Wikipedia</a><br />
<a href="http://www.anitablakewiki.com/">Anita Blake Wiki</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Interviews</strong><br />
<a href="http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=19697">Bitten By Books</a> (this is the afterward of the book)<br />
Author <a href="http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/podcast/Podcast_March_2010.mp3">Blog Podcast</a> (direct link)<br />
Author <a href="http://blog.laurellkhamilton.org/index.php/site/comments/the_flirt_blog_as_promised//">Blog Post about Flirt </a><br />
<br />
Book Trailer:<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/dSNPqrnSWTo&hl=en_US&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/dSNPqrnSWTo&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<u>Source</u>: My personal collection, special thanks to <a href="http://www.zoereads.com/">Zoe Reads</a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations<br />
</em>Cemetary:</strong> Like in <em>The Laughing Corpse</em>, Anita ends up in a cemetery<br />
<strong>Lion:</strong> Quite a few werelions in this one!</span></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7441624898003891357.post-48940506065705984052010-08-05T01:28:00.015-05:002011-02-14T00:23:14.889-06:00Serial Killer in Sin City<blockquote><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN40b19pFAmTePVO_x3m8aLrg3-gL3Txy8pClwycNFMYNz9kodC6hi2op-oWrD7RLq2yPji2XeoTZw4eIO5Nr-JL6buwN7YFUQAvob5CYBkkww5Si0NstyRloyuhfXYLQGjMRHGickKVJk/s1600/skin-main.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501813926078380274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN40b19pFAmTePVO_x3m8aLrg3-gL3Txy8pClwycNFMYNz9kodC6hi2op-oWrD7RLq2yPji2XeoTZw4eIO5Nr-JL6buwN7YFUQAvob5CYBkkww5Si0NstyRloyuhfXYLQGjMRHGickKVJk/s320/skin-main.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 212px;" /></a><em>Once you tell someone certain things—say, you got mailed a human head in a box—they tend to think you're crazy.<br />
<br />
Anita Blake's reputation has taken some hits. Not on the work front, where she has the highest kill count of all the legal vampire executioners in the country, but on the personal front. No one seems to trust a woman who sleeps with the monsters. Still, when a vampire serial killer sends her a head from Las Vegas, Anita has to warn Sin City's local authorities what they're dealing with. Only it's worse than she thought. Police officers and one executioner have been slain—paranormal style...<br />
<br />
Anita heads to Las Vegas, where she's joined by three other U. S. Marshals, including the ruthless Edward hiding behind his mild-mannered persona. It's a good thing Edward always has her back because when she gets close t to the bodies, Anita senses "tiger" too strongly to ignore it. The weretigers are very powerful in Las Vegas, which means the odds of her rubbing someone important the wrong way just got a lot higher...</em></blockquote><br />
<strong>Title:</strong> Skin Trade<br />
<strong>Author:</strong> <a href="http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/">Laurell K. Hamilton </a><br />
<strong>Series:</strong> Anita Blake, Book 17<br />
<strong>Start & Finished:</strong> 7/15/10- 7/16/10<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> June 2, 2009<br />
<strong>Publisher:</strong> Berkley Publishing<br />
<strong>Pages:</strong> 496<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> Mystery, Urban Fantasy<br />
<br />
In an interview, Laurell K. Hamilton said that the seventeenth book in her Anita Blake series <em>Skin Trade</em> was one of the hardest books she wrote for this series for various reasons but mainly because she had to scramble to do the research she usually does for the books. For example, there's a morgue scene in Las Vegas with Olaf and Anita yet Ms. Hamilton hadn't visited a morgue in ten years and many things had changed. The bad guy from <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/sex-and-serial-killers.html"><em>Incubus Dreams</em> </a>is back i<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtPUzoHNFk9gJFj6wn3d__6MmakC9WClJK-YnsdQMj20tPJp40D2dl2MjjkiYzuzoRdSiCZLBWbgfnElyHQLo5wwSumCrMoGFe5FdiH_5r9wdutufNX3bJYXfFdz0tKCWAGLIxyPfXNC_/s1600/skin-tigers.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501814057079892802" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtPUzoHNFk9gJFj6wn3d__6MmakC9WClJK-YnsdQMj20tPJp40D2dl2MjjkiYzuzoRdSiCZLBWbgfnElyHQLo5wwSumCrMoGFe5FdiH_5r9wdutufNX3bJYXfFdz0tKCWAGLIxyPfXNC_/s200/skin-tigers.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 120px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>n this book and we finally get to meet him instead of just his minions. Oh and Anita has moved into the Circus with Jean-Claude and all her other lovers but it’s becoming a strain on everybody so this little “vacation” to Las Vegas to hunt the serial killer is just what the doctor ordered: ‘If I hadn’t been convinced that Vittorio wanted to kill me and mail my head somewhere, I’d have looked forward to the trip to Vegas. I needed some distance between me and the men in my life.’<br />
<br />
While I haven’t been overly disappointed like some of the fans of this series, I have to admit that this was the first book that I didn’t buy and read as soon as it came out. I’ve heard for awhile now that it has some of the flavoring of the earlier Anita Blake books that we all loved and it kind of did. However, there was just something about this that screamed, “trying too hard” at times. My main problem was just how almost soft that Edward has gotten (Hamilton has said that she thinks that now that he‘s a family man he‘s more dangerous but I just didn‘t see it <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9DXPvQw19o5EJdgONDQXX0xr9z6GD3pq39GZmTrjh5C73hgoL3SWNX4CqaoBrKHZ8PRcwRZTGeBTZbv5fIffM0DhR7eXTgQ91WC3XVdH60NRteLKLkxkCCtf9686gkcPdCecB6osULKNE/s1600/skin-vegas.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501814180353505954" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9DXPvQw19o5EJdgONDQXX0xr9z6GD3pq39GZmTrjh5C73hgoL3SWNX4CqaoBrKHZ8PRcwRZTGeBTZbv5fIffM0DhR7eXTgQ91WC3XVdH60NRteLKLkxkCCtf9686gkcPdCecB6osULKNE/s200/skin-vegas.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 133px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>here). There still isn’t a sexual vibe between Anita and him thank goodness but he’s not quite as cold blooded as he used to be. Don’t even get me started on how creepy Olaf trying to be somewhat normal for Anita is either. I did like Vegas’ SWAT team, of which most had some kind of powers. One even feeds off of memories like Anita feeds off of sex.<br />
<br />
Anita Blake has always worried about becoming one of the monsters and now she practically is one. However, she’s not evil and because of Wicked and Truth (two vampire warriors that she blood -oathed in <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/another-action-packed-adventure-for.html">The Harlequin</a></em>) she now has a fail safe in place if she ever becomes that way. Anita has faced a lot of incredibly scary things in the previous books but Olaf is the only one besides Marmee Noir that really scares me. Speaking of which, Hamilton finally lets us know what Marmee Noir wants with Anita in <em>Skin Trade</em>.<br />
<br />
Though Edward and even Olaf have appeared in other books, <em>Skin Trade</em> is more like <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/gods-and-grisly-murders.html"><em>Obsidian Butterfly</em> </a>than any other (Bernardo Spotted-Horse even comes back for this one). Well, Olaf is a Marshal now too… but he’s still a serial killer. Just one that plays with vampires now. Of course <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdjUBNu2A4L0UcxoVijIlGGck0h0himwsUNuSHYOSPmd9LeJq3M9aYIbXCCzMg6IFAwy5eF39QTFXrRYZ3DrkUomIlKp3tQlDyj3jHU93avvXf4yUDXypDHhqZnB7wnZPgeM9OacjwDBB0/s1600/Skin-cops.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501814502466646770" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdjUBNu2A4L0UcxoVijIlGGck0h0himwsUNuSHYOSPmd9LeJq3M9aYIbXCCzMg6IFAwy5eF39QTFXrRYZ3DrkUomIlKp3tQlDyj3jHU93avvXf4yUDXypDHhqZnB7wnZPgeM9OacjwDBB0/s200/Skin-cops.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: right; height: 134px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 200px;" /></a>it has been three years according to the series since Olaf, Bernando, and Anita first met (nine since that book was actually published though). Unlike in <em><a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/gods-and-grisly-murders.html">Obsidian Butterfly</a></em>, Anita now has the ardeur to contend with and ends up having to bring her own “snacks” and bodyguards which includes everyone from Wicked, Truth, and Requiem, to wereanimals like Haven (Cookie Monster) etc, though they seem like more of an afterthought, besides the vampires which have important roles. I’m truly impressed with how long Ms. Hamilton held out on having sex in this story since most of her books past <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-chapter-in-anitas-life.html"><em>Narcissus in Chains</em> </a>are more sex than plot driven. From all of my complaints it does seem like I didn’t like <em>Skin Trade</em> when I actually did. I thought it was one of the stronger books that have been published in recent years and I look forward to seeing where the author will take her characters next.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><u>Favorite Quotes</u></b></div><blockquote><strong>Of course, there were people who said that I was a serial killer. I still had the highest kill count of all the legal vampire executioners in the United States. I’d topped a hundred this year. Did it really matter that I didn’t enjoy my kills? Did it really change anything that I took no sexual pleasure from it? Did it matter that in the beginning I’d thrown up? Did the fact that I’d had an order of execution for most of my kills make them better, less brutal? There were serial killers who had used only poison, which caused almost no pain; they’d been less brutal than me. Lately, I’d begun to wonder exactly what set me apart from people like Vittorio. I’d begun to question if to my oh-so-legal victims it mattered what my motives were.<br />
A woman answered the phone in Las Vegas, and I began the process of getting passed up the line to the person who might be able to tell me whose head I had in the box.<br />
<br />
Without talking to each other, or even looking at each other, the four of us formed points of a square to watch the room. I made sure my point was watching the coming tigers, but we all knew our jobs. I might have issues with Olaf, and even Bernardo, but it was nice to work with people who knew how to deal. We covered the room, not like cops but more like soldiers. No, we covered the room like people who were used to pulling guns and shooting first. None of us were really cops. Cops save lives; we took them. Four executioners standing in a room; best to be elsewhere.<br />
<br />
I sat in the back of the squad car musing on what it meant to have a badge when your job description hadn’t changed. We were assassins. Legal, government-sanctioned assassins. Some of us tried to be good marshals, but in the end, the other marshals saved lives, and all we did was take them. In the end, all the badges in the world didn’t change what we were and what we did.<br />
</strong></blockquote><br />
<u>Anita Blake Series</u><br />
1. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/anita-blakes-first-book.html">Guilty Pleasures </a>(1993)<br />
2. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/killer-zombie-on-loose.html">The Laughing Corpse </a>(1994)<br />
3. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/into-dark-big-top.html">Circus of the Damned</a> (1995)<br />
4. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/shifter-community-is-in-trouble.html">The Lunatic Café</a> (1996)<br />
5. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/monsters-vampires-and-faeries.html">Bloody Bones </a>(1996)<br />
6. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/werewolves-and-assassination-attempts.html">The Killing Dance</a> (1997)<br />
7. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/vampire-council-and-inferno.html">Burnt Offerings</a> (1998)<br />
8. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/werewolf-politics-and-growing-powers.html">Blue Moon </a>(1998)<br />
9. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/gods-and-grisly-murders.html">Obsidian Butterfly </a>(2000)<br />
10. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-chapter-in-anitas-life.html">Narcissus in Chains</a> (2001)<br />
11. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/vampire-politics-are-not-fun.html">Cerulean Sins </a>(2003)<br />
12. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/sex-and-serial-killers.html">Incubus Dreams</a> (2004)<br />
13. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/nimir-raj-and-nimir-ra-are-out-of-town.html">Micah</a> (2006)<br />
14. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/07/metaphysical-beasts-pregnancy-scare.html">Danse Macabre</a> (2006)<br />
15. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2007/09/another-action-packed-adventure-for.html">The Harlequin</a> (2007)<br />
16. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2008/10/anita-jason-take-trip.html">Blood Noir</a> (2008)<br />
17. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/serial-killer-in-sin-city.html">Skin Trade</a> (2009)<br />
18. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/raising-dead-for-bad-reasons.html">Flirt</a> (2010)<br />
19. <a href="http://reviewsofthings.blogspot.com/2010/08/marmee-noir-is-back.html">Bullet</a> (2010)<br />
<div>20. Hit List (2011)<br />
<br />
<strong>First Paragraph:</strong> I'd worked my share of serial killer cases, but none of the killers had ever mailed me a human head. That was new. I looked down at the head, ghostly, through the plastic bag it was wrapped in. It sat on my desk, on top of the desk blotter, like hundreds of other packages that had been delivered to Animators Inc., where our motto was Where the Living Raise the Dead for a Killing. The head had been packed in ice, for all the world like some employee of the postal service had done it. Maybe they had; vampires can be very persuasive, and it was a vampire who had sent the package. A vampire names Vittorio. He'd included a letter with my name written on the envelope in lovely calligraphy: Anita Blake. He wanted me to know who to thank for my little surprise. He and his people had slaughtered over ten people in St. Louis alone before he fled to parts unknown. Well, not unknown now, maybe. There was a return address on the package. It had been mailed from Las Vegas, Nevada.<br />
<br />
<strong>Find Laurell K. Hamilton Online</strong><br />
<a href="http://blog.laurellkhamilton.org/index.php/blog/">Author’s Blog</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Laurell-K-Hamilton/136225597631?ref=search&sid=842417719.2607476756..1">Author’s Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/LKHamilton">Author’s Twitter</a><br />
<br />
<strong>Links:<br />
</strong><a href="http://www.anitablakewiki.com/">Author Wikipedia<br />
Anita Blake Wiki </a><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin_Trade_(novel)">Book Wikipedia </a><br />
<a href="http://www.podcast.tv/video-episodes/episode-2-laurell-k-hamilton-10121167.html">Project Paranormal</a> (video)<br />
<br />
<div><b>Interviews:</b></div><div><a href="http://theauthorhour.com/laurell-k-hamilton/">The Author Hour</a> (podcast)</div><div><a href="http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2008-11-19/news/mistress-of-horror-nobody-writes-vampire-novels-the-way-st-louis-laurell-k-hamilton-does-ndash-and-yes-there-s-lots-of-sex/1/">River Front Times</a></div><div><br />
<u>Source</u>: From personal collection<br />
<br />
Skin Trade Interview:<br />
<object height="240" width="460"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lEZt7AFBCtY&hl=en_US&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lEZt7AFBCtY&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="460" height="240"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;"><strong><em>Picture Explanations<br />
</em>Tiger:</strong> There are a lot of weretigers in this book and that’s in addition to all the colors of the rainbow of tiger that Anita carries inside herself.<br />
<strong>Las Vegas:</strong> Where the book is set at and Anita gets to see it like this when one of her vampires flies her somewhere.<br />
<strong>Cops:</strong> Anita gets to play with out of state cops. None of whom are fun to be around besides the special unit.</span></div></div>Ladytink_534http://www.blogger.com/profile/14317480621483829078noreply@blogger.com7