Category Archives: reviews

My 2 Cents… Velvet Buzzsaw

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 Would you prefer to watch the review, instead of reading it? CLICK HEREVB

Title: Velvet Buzzsaw
Director: Dan Gilroy
Writer: Dan Gilroy
Stars: Jake Gyllenhall, Rene Russo, Zawe Ashton, Toni Collette, Natalia Dyer, and John Malkovich

SHOW RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★
Story: ★★
Acting: ★★★★
Costumes: ★★★
Overall: ★★★ (2.75)

 

Storyline:
After a series of paintings by an unknown artist are discovered, a supernatural force enacts revenge on those who have allowed their greed to get in the way of art.

My 2 Cents:
Being a horror movie lover, I was excited to see what this was all about. I felt like the concept… an art-world satire/horror where art comes to life and kills…was intriguing, but the end result was underwhelming to say the least. The first 2/3 of the film was fine, a bit slow, but fine. The last 1/3 of the film seemed to forget the actual plot or purpose. Instead of one dead man’s art coming to life and killing… all the art starting to kill people, even the tattoo on one of the character’s shoulder. That, was just one of many moments where the film script lost focus completely.

ACTORS: The cast lineup was impressive with Jake Gyllenhall, Rene Russo, Toni Collette, Natalia Dyer, and John Malkovich and their performances did not disappoint, despite the poorly written script and minimal character development. With that said… this felt more like a role that James Franco would play, rather than Jake Gyllenhall. 

STORY: Honestly, I felt that Velvet Buzzsaw was a mess. I enjoy a good b-movie horror, but this didn’t even live up to that.

WRITING: The writing, in my opinion, was all over the place.

EDITING: The editing was choppy and the felt forced.

Do I recommend this one? No.
Would I see it again? No. I feel like that was two hours of my life that I will never get back.

Check out my YouTube channel and the video review below… and make sure you hit subscribe so you never miss a video.

https://youtu.be/vQUoWaZSACA

You can watch the official trailers and video clips here:

https://youtu.be/XdAR-lK43YU

Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake

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Would you prefer to watch the video review, instead of reading it? CLICK HEREAnna

TITLE: Anna Dressed In Blood
AUTHOR: Kendare Blake

RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★★★
Story: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★★★
Appearance: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★★ (4.75)

 

AMAZON DESCRIPTION:
Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. They follow legends and local lore, destroy the murderous dead, and keep pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

Searching for a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas expects the usual: track, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, now stained red and dripping with blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

Yet she spares Cas’s life.

Buy it HERE on Amazon!

The Critical Points:
This book has been sitting on my shelf for a while now. I’m not really sure why I hadn’t read it before now. I’ve loved the cover since it was given to me but just never felt compelled to read it. I’m so glad that I finally did. A couple weeks ago, I was in the mood for ghost stories, which is why I started reading 20th Century Ghosts. Well, when that one left me feeling less than excited, I decided to pick up Anna Dressed In Blood which promised a ghost dressed in Blood. I was crossing my fingers that I wouldn’t be let down again.

WRITING: Kendare Blake has a very easy, fluid writing style. Anna Dressed in Blood was a fast read that left very few questions unanswered. It is full of adventure, awkward teens, death, and although it’s not a love story, that’s in there too.

STORY: Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story…
Actually, there is nothing average about this story. It’s a fun coming of age Young Adult story of a teenage ghost hunter who finally finds his tribe.

CHARACTERS: Every character, at least the important ones, are fleshed out to the point where you feel like you know them. Blake has a beautiful way of bringing unlikely friends together and making it feel completely natural. You care for Cas, Thomas, and Carmel and when things don’t go their way, it hurts. Sure, there are some untimely deaths (I won’t tell you who or how), but in a ghost hunting story, there has to be… Don’t worry, she kills the right characters.

APPEARANCE: I wish I knew who designed the cover, but unfortunately it isn’t written on the copywrite page. The cover, which shows Anna standing outside of her Victorian home, is actually foreshadowing what happens in the book. It is beautiful, whimsical, and romantic and perfectly portrays the feel of the story that Blake has created.

MY FAVORITE QUOTE:
I had a hard time coming up with a favorite quote from this one. Let me explain, typically, I find my favorite quote(s) while I’m reading. Something will just hit me and I’ll love it and either highlight it or write it down. But, with Anna Dressed In Blood, I was so engrossed in the story that I didn’t think about the fact that I needed to find my favorite quote. I was lost in the world Blake had created. Trust me, that’s a very good thing.

So, I had to go back… thumb through the pages to see if I could find a quote that stood out. Of course, I did.

“Until a few weeks ago, none of this was real.”

It’s a simple little quote, and seemingly means nothing without the context of what was around it. However, I like it because its true for any book of fiction you pick up. None of it is real… yet if it is written well, it feels so real. The characters feel like they have come to life on the pages and it is sad and painful when you have to let them go at the end of the story.

OK, one more favorite quote… just for fun:

“But hey, at least we’ll have this strange story to tell, love and death and blood and daddy-issues. And holy crap, I’m a psychiatrist’s wet dream.”

Check out my YouTube channel and the video review below… and make sure you hit subscribe so you never miss a video.

https://youtu.be/c_CXEXBZheQ

NEXT WEEK’S #FRIDAYREADS SELECTION: GIRL OF NIGHTMARES by KENDARE BLAKE The second (and final) book in the Anna Dressed In Blood series.

GIRL

My 2 Cents… The Favorite

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The Favorite

Title: The Favorite
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Writers: Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara
Stars: Olivia Colman (Queen Anne), Emma Stone (Queen’s Maid), and Rachel Weisz (Lady Sarah)

SHOW RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★
Story: ★★
Acting: ★★★★★
Costumes: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★ (3.5)

 

 

Storyline:
Early 18th century. England is at war with the French. Nevertheless, duck racing and pineapple eating are thriving. A frail Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) occupies the throne and her close friend Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) governs the country in her stead while tending to Anne’s ill-health and mercurial temper. When a new servant Abigail (Emma Stone) arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah. Sarah takes Abigail under her wing and Abigail sees a chance at a return to her aristocratic roots. As the politics of war become quite time-consuming for Sarah, Abigail steps into the breach to fill in as the Queen’s companion. Their burgeoning friendship gives her a chance to fulfill her ambitions and she will not let woman, man, politics or rabbit stand in her way. Written by Fox Searchlight Pictures

My 2 Cents:
I really don’t even know what to say… I read all the amazing reviews and was so excited when the DVD from SAG showed up for my pre-award screening. Then, I watched the film and wondered, what am I missing?

I will admit that the acting was wonderful. If it weren’t for Emma Stone, who played her role beautifully, I probably wouldn’t have made it to the end credits. She was wonderful, with what she was given. Olivia Colman is a strong actress as is Rachel Weisz, but what they had to work with wasn’t worth their talent.

The costumes and even the accuracy of the set was very well done.

The script was bizarre… weird… and poorly written and seemed to have no real plot. The directing was artistic in a pretentious way, rather than a thought-provoking way.

The soundtrack drowned out the dialogue so badly that I’m sure I missed major aspects of the plot (if there was a plot). It annoyed me to the point where I found myself distracted.

Honestly, I feel like I waisted time that I will never be able to get back.

You can watch the official trailer here:

A Door to Our Minds

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bookTITLE: A Door to Our Minds
AUTHORS: Lilly Brown, Bethany Martin, Jordan E. Lasater, Brenton Porter, and Bearcina

RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★★
Stories: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★★
Appearance: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★ (4)

AMAZON DESCRIPTION:
Take a journey through the minds of five young, teenage, aspiring authors with this exciting anthology of short stories. You’ll start in a world not too different from our own, where a group of teens are undergoing a deadly quest to bring peace to their land in The Spark. Then, you’ll meet two curious young adults and follow them as they uncover the mysteries of several unsolved disappearances in The Peculiar Case of Matthias Chase. In There is Love in War, you’ll be thrown into a world full of werewolves, griffons, Gods and Goddesses. Next, you’ll travel back in time to a realm where medieval guardsmen fought with swords and bow and arrow to protect their Emperor from building threats in The Trials of Gebhuza. Finally, you’ll travel light-years away, to the endless depths of space in Years in a Blink, where a raging war on the small planet of Rainmia has forever changed the life of young Artemia and set her on a scientific course and a lifelong journey.

Buy it HERE on Amazon!

INSIDE THE COVER:
First let me start by saying that I had my hand in this book as well. Although I am not one of the authors, I did help them through the process. This group of amazing teen authors took their stories from concept to publication, a task that many would love to achieve. I am beyond proud of all five of them and am so honored that I was able to go on this journey with them. It is there first published work and I am looking forward to seeing how the grow as authors from this to the next.

WRITING: I won’t discuss each of the stories or authors separately, but what I will say is that they are developing authors who are learning to express themselves through their unique voices. There is true talent in these pages and I have a feeling this is not the last we will hear from them.

STORIES: This collection contained 5 short stories as you will see below.

The Spark, by Lilly Brown
During the brutal war over the Flame throne, a prophecy was delivered forever changing the lives of Elyse, James, Beth, Dan, and Reese. Even as children they were charged with the responsibilities of being named the Prophecy Warriors. Now, eleven years later, the prophecy has come to bare truth and these noble five must fight to save their country before it is ripped apart at the seams. Not all will survive, but if they can band together long enough to fulfill their birthright then their losses will not be in vain.

The Peculiar Case of Matthias Chase, by Bethany Martin
MATTHIAS CHASE, a small-town Golden Boy, has been missing for three days. With little evidence and no leads, the local detectives are getting nowhere. However, Aiden Altoviti, who recently graduated in Matthias’s class, has become quite invested in the case. With the help of his best friend, Bexley Craig, they uncover some strange details that tie Matthias’ disappearance to cases long in the past.

Unexplainable events continue to happen to Aiden and Bexley, causing them to believe there is so much more to the case than meets the eye. With unknown forces working against them, the teens find fiction and reality blurring together. Aiden and Bexley quickly piece things together, but Matthias’s time is running out. Perhaps Aiden and Bexley can get there in time to save Matthias. However, fate might have other plans for him.

There is Love in War, by Jordan E. Lasater
Have you ever loved someone so desperately but knew in your heart you couldn’t be with them? Love in War is a crazy tale full of werewolves, griffons, Gods, and Goddesses. Two star crossed lovers, Luna and Cyrus, try to make a life together, only to be pulled worlds apart. Surrounded by death and war, their souls get torn apart life after life. Is trying even worth it? After all he is just a boy and she is just a girl. Or are they?

The Trials of Gebhuza, by Brenton Porter
Amerellius and Amy are just two ordinary citizens serving the empire and living a normal life. That all changes when the emperor comes to town. After a failed attempt to take the emperor’s life, the Gebhuza, an elite force, is tasked with protecting the emperor and his empire from any and all threats. The time to put that force to use comes sooner than expected when trouble brews within the kingdom’s borders. Can Amerellius and Amy lead the Gebhuza and save the kingdom from utter desolation or will it fall in flames?

Years in a Blink, by Bearcina
Billions of Lightyears away, something- or someone- may just be screaming out in the endless depth of space, and you just can’t hear it.

A war raged across a lone little planet called Rainmia, and caught in the middle of it was a Betta named Artemia. She yearned for vengeance on a planet to be long forgotten in the eternity of time. Now, the Betta is much older, with her own laboratory that hosts the Universe’s best technology and brightest minds. Princess Persephone happens to get caught up in this mess right alongside Artemia.

Just remember, no one can hear you scream.

CHARACTERS: Again, not going to dive into each of the stories, but considering these are all short stories, I believe the authors did a beautiful job of giving us back story and just enough character development to care.

APPEARANCE: The cover, which was designed by Contagious Covers, is beautiful, whimsical, and draws you in before you even turn it over to read the back. Within the pages of the anthology, each story has its own cover as well. These interior story covers were created by Amanda Orneck with input from the authors themselves. I believe she did a wonderful job capturing the feel of each story.

MY FAVORITE QUOTES:
“You’ve proven you can beat is alone, but we were trained to fight together. How can you stand against two of us?” ~ Reese in The Spark

“Yeah, I’m great. I absolutely love getting thrown against trees, this is the highlight of my day.” ~ Bexley in The Peculiar Case of Matthias Chase

“That’s very generous of you, but I’m giving you one last chance to hand her over – and I promise to make it quick when I kill all of your men.” ~ Princess Luna in There is Love in War

“If there is any more knocking, the door might just break.” ~ Amerellius in Trials of Gebhuza

“Panther, listen, that’s not going to reverse the sulfuric poisoning. I don’t care what kinds of miracle medicine she so called, needs; she can’t wake up, or she’ll die.” ~ Riddley in Years in a Blink

Check out my YouTube channel and the video review below… and make sure you hit subscribe so you never miss a video.

https://youtu.be/cc3MZW5uuM0

My 2 Cents… Beautiful Boy

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beautiful boyTitle: Beautiful Boy
Director: Felix van Groeningen
Writers: Luke Davies, Felix van Groeningen, David Sheff, and Nic Sheff
Stars: Steve Carell, Timothee Chalamet, and Maura Tierney

SHOW RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★★★
Story: ★★★★★
Acting: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★★ (5)

By your copy of the book Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction HERE!

Storyline:
Based on the best-selling pair of memoirs from father and son David and Nic Sheff, Beautiful Boy chronicles the heartbreaking and inspiring experience of survival, relapse, and recovery in a family coping with addiction over many years.

My 2 Cents:
This movie tore me apart and broke my heart. As a mother, I pray my children never find themselves in a situation like this, but if they do, I hope and pray I have the strength to help them fight.

This is probably one of the best films I’ve seen in a long time and yet, there is no way you could make me watch it again. It was heart-wrenching and emotionally devastating. The casting was spot on and I truly believe that Timothee Chalamet is one of the best young actors in movies today. I look forward to watching more of his films in the coming months and years.

The strained father/son relationship between David Sheff (played by Steve Carell) and Nic Sheff (played by Timothee Chalamet) is so real and raw that it makes you feel guilty for watching. Steve Carell who I always think of as a comedic actor was nothing less than perfect in his role.

Beautiful Boy deserves to be recognized for the beautiful work it is. It deserves Oscar nominations for directing, cinematography, adapted screenplay, and of course for both Timothee Chalamet and Steve Carell.

I dare you to watch this film without crying!

You can watch the official trailers and video clips here:

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1226837/videoplayer/vi3210525465?ref_=tt_pv_vi_aiv_1

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1226837/videoplayer/vi2885335833?ref_=tt_pv_vi_aiv_2

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1226837/videoplayer/vi2593110553?ref_=tt_pv_vi_aiv_3

20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill

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20th cen.TITLE: 20th Century Ghosts
AUTHOR: Joe Hill

RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★
Story: ★★★
Characters: ★★★
Appearance: ★★★
Overall: ★★★ (3)

AMAZON DESCRIPTION:
From the New York Times bestselling author of NOS4A2 and Horns comes this award-winning collection of short fiction.

Imogene is young, beautiful . . . and dead, waiting in the Rosebud Theater one afternoon in 1945. . . .

Francis was human once, but now he’s an eight-foot-tall locust, and everyone in Calliphora will tremble when they hear him sing. . . .

John is locked in a basement stained with the blood of half a dozen murdered children, and an antique telephone, long since disconnected, rings at night with calls from the dead. . . .

Nolan knows but can never tell what really happened in the summer of ’77, when his idiot savant younger brother built a vast cardboard fort with secret doors leading into other worlds. . . .

The past isn’t dead. It isn’t even past. . . .

Buy it HERE on Amazon!

THE CRITICAL POINTS
I’ll be honest, when I started reading this short story anthology, I had a hard time getting into it. Many of the stories were more science fiction or horror rather than what I typically consider a ghost story.

WRITING: Hill is a powerful writer, there is no denying it, with an active imagination. His visuals are often spot on in a very disturbing way.

STORY: This collection contained 15 short stories… I’m not going to lie, I didn’t enjoy them all. There was very little character development and the formatting from story to story was not consistent. So, I will take the time to focus on the few that I did enjoy.

20th Century Ghost
The Rosebud Theatre is an old-style movie palace, haunted by the semi-legendary spirit of a young woman. The girl died during a screening of The Wizard of Oz, appears infrequently throughout the Twentieth Century, and occasionally starts conversations with a select few moviegoers. The story is told by Alec Sheldon, the theatre owner, who worries about his approaching mortality and what will happen to the Rosebud after he retires.

  • My Thoughts: The ending was way to abrupt, and not at all where I felt the story was going or should have gone. However, I enjoyed the journey. I wanted more of the young girl, but was given less of the “ghost” and more of the old man running the theatre.

The Black Phone
Thirteen-year-old John Finney is kidnapped by a man named Al. Trapped in a basement room, the boy’s only hope may lie in a mysterious disconnected black phone hanging on the basement wall. The phone rings at night with the whispers of the kidnapper’s previous (and now dead) victims.

  • My Thoughts: As a mom, this story is my worst fear. The fear of one of my children being abducted is something I have had nightmares about since becoming pregnant with my first child. Hill captures the emotion of the experience perfectly, makes you feel, smell, even taste was is happening to the young boy. It killed me not to be able to reach into the book and protect him. I wont give away the ending, but it was one of the few stories where I felt somewhat satisfied as a reader… although, not completely.

Last Breath
The story concerns Dr. Allinger, an old man who runs a “Museum of Silence” which contains the last breaths of various people, some being famous figures such as Edgar Allan Poe.

  • My Thoughts: This is a simple story with a hint of a creepiness factor, but nothing solid to point to. The characters are simple, and relatable. It is one of the shorter stories in the collection, but it makes you wonder about life and death in a way that none of the other stories do.

CHARACTERS: Again, not a lot of character development. Although there were characters throughout the collection that I enjoyed and rooted for, there wasn’t one in every story. Hill’s writing didn’t make me love the characters. In fact, more often than not, I despised the characters or feared the fact that somewhere out in the world there were people really like them. With that said, I think Hill accomplished exactly what he was setting out to do.

APPEARANCE: The cover portrays bugs, which won’t make sense until you read You Will Hear the Locust Sing. I have to say; this story was one of my least favorites. Probably because it was, in a word, gross.

MY FAVORITE QUOTES:
“You get an astronaut’s life whether you want it or not. Leave it all behind for a world you know nothing about. That’s just the deal.” ~ Art in POP ART

“Wait. There are all different kinds of silence. The silence in a seashell. The silence after a gunshot. His last breath is still in there. Your ears need time to acclimate. In a while you’ll be able to make it out. His own particular final silence.” ~ Alinger in LAST BREATH

Check out my YouTube channel and the video review below… and make sure you hit subscribe so you never miss a video.

https://youtu.be/SaTYamD44dw

My 2 Cents… VICE

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VICE

Title: VICE
Director: Adam McKay
Writers: Adam McKay
Stars: Christian Bale (Dick Cheney), Amy Adams (Lynne Cheney), and Steve Carell (Donald Rumsfeld)

SHOW RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★
Story: ★★★★
Acting: ★★★★★
Makeup: ★★★★★
Editing: ★
Overall: ★★★★ (3.6)

 

 

Storyline:
The story of Dick Cheney, an unassuming bureaucratic Washington insider, who quietly wielded immense power as Vice President to George W. Bush, reshaping the country and the globe in ways that we still feel today.

My 2 Cents:
If you’ve been reading my movie reviews, you’ll notice I added two more categories to this one (Makeup and Editing) because I really believe they needed to be mentioned. Let me start with makeup… OMG!!! The makeup was phenomenal in this film and if it doesn’t win some awards, I will be truly shocked. Just check out the photos below:

Editing… well, that left much to be desired. The movie was all over the map in terms of timeline, and maybe it was because I was watching a SAG Award Viewer Copy, but the weird credits that ran in the middle of the film making it feel like the end of the film was just weird. Not to mention the fact that the timelines were all jumbled up, which made the story hard to follow.

I can’t blame it all on the editing… the writing wasn’t top notch either. Maybe it was true to the situation, I don’t know. I guess I’ll never really know.

The story… well, it was based on a true story, so I guess its only as good as real life can be.

Acting… Other than makeup, the acting is where this film excelled. Christian Bale, Amy Adams, and Steve Carell were outstanding in this film. They embodied their characters, and even when you hated them you could appreciate their commitment to their roles.

You can watch the official trailers here:

https://youtu.be/aSGFt6w0wok

Amy Adams as Lynne Cheney was AMAZING… Check out her performance here:

https://youtu.be/L1tDnzx-5iA 

ELEVATION by Stephen King

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elevation

TITLE: Elevation
AUTHOR: Stephen King

RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★★
Story: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★★
Appearance: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★ (4)

 

AMAZON DESCRIPTION:
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

The latest from legendary master storyteller Stephen King, a riveting, extraordinarily eerie, and moving story about a man whose mysterious affliction brings a small town together—a timely, upbeat tale about finding common ground despite deep-rooted differences.

Although Scott Carey doesn’t look any different, he’s been steadily losing weight. There are a couple of other odd things, too. He weighs the same in his clothes and out of them, no matter how heavy they are. Scott doesn’t want to be poked and prodded. He mostly just wants someone else to know, and he trusts Doctor Bob Ellis.

In the small town of Castle Rock, the setting of many of King’s most iconic stories, Scott is engaged in a low grade—but escalating—battle with the lesbians next door whose dog regularly drops his business on Scott’s lawn. One of the women is friendly; the other, cold as ice. Both are trying to launch a new restaurant, but the people of Castle Rock want no part of a gay married couple, and the place is in trouble. When Scott finally understands the prejudices they face–including his own—he tries to help. Unlikely alliances, the annual foot race, and the mystery of Scott’s affliction bring out the best in people who have indulged the worst in themselves and others.

From Stephen King, our “most precious renewable resource, like Shakespeare in the malleability of his work” (The Guardian), Elevation is an antidote to our divisive culture, as gloriously joyful (with a twinge of deep sadness) as “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

Buy it HERE on Amazon!

THE CRITICAL POINTS
The cover says ‘ELEVATION a novel” but it really isn’t a novel. At only 146 pages, small pages at that, I’m guessing ELEVATION can’t be 50,000 words. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’d say it’s probably a novella. I read one review that called it a short story, and for Stephen King it is, but in reality its more than that.

WRITING: It’s Stephen King, so the writing is spot on.

STORY: Elevation takes ordinary people and puts them in an impossible situation. So basically, its your typical King story. I loved that there were two main stories going on here, the first being the communities lack of acceptance of the new lesbian couple that moved to town, and the second being Scott Carey’s inexplainable weight loss. At first glance it doesn’t seem that these two stories make sense together, but in the end everything comes together.

There wasn’t a lot of backstory. We don’t find out what brought Missy and Deirdre to town other than the affordable restaurant space. We don’t find out what causes Scott’s drastic weight loss. We don’t even find out what happens after everything comes to a head and he loses those final pounds, not really anyway. What we do find out, and the message behind this story, is how a single act of kindness can change everything. I won’t go into more details, if you want to know what I mean… read the book.

CHARACTERS: There are four main characters, with a few smaller characters sprinkled throughout. Again, not a lot of backstory and even less character development. Yet, somehow, it works for this book. As readers, we come into the lives of these characters for only a brief moment. We are the proverbial fly on the wall. It’s a very voyeuristic reading experience and at times you feel guilty for watching, but by the end you care for the characters you know so little about and, if you’re like me, you just might cry.

APPEARANCE: The cover is beautiful, but you won’t understand it until the end.

MY FAVORITE QUOTES:
“Not a wind, not even a high, exactly, but an elevation. A sense that you had gone beyond yourself and could go farther still.”

“Gravity is the anchor that pulls us down into our graves.”

Check out my YouTube channel and the video review below… and make sure you hit subscribe so you never miss a video.

https://youtu.be/ciWORKbC3O4

My 2 Cents… Bohemian Rhapsody

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Queen

Title: Bohemian Rhapsody
Director: Bryan Singer
Writers: Anthony McCarten and Peter Morgan
Stars: Rami Malek (Freddie Mercury), Lucy Boynton (Mary Austin), Gwilym Lee (Brian May), Ben Hardy (Roger Taylor), Joseph Mazzello (John Deacon), Aidan Gillen (John Reid), Allen Leech (Paul Prenter), Tom Hollander (Jim Beach) and Mike Myers (Ray Foster)

SHOW RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★★★
Story: ★★★★
Acting: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★★ (4.66)

 

Storyline:
Bohemian Rhapsody is a foot-stomping celebration of Queen, their music and their extraordinary lead singer Freddie Mercury. Freddie defied stereotypes and shattered convention to become one of the most beloved entertainers on the planet. The film traces the meteoric rise of the band through their iconic songs and revolutionary sound. They reach unparalleled success, but in an unexpected turn Freddie, surrounded by darker influences, shuns Queen in pursuit of his solo career. Having suffered greatly without the collaboration of Queen, Freddie manages to reunite with his band mates just in time for Live Aid. While bravely facing a recent AIDS diagnosis, Freddie leads the band in one of the greatest performances in the history of rock music. Queen cements a legacy that continues to inspire outsiders, dreamers and music lovers to this day. Written by Twentieth Century Fox

My 2 Cents:
My husband and I both really enjoyed this film. I’ve been a Queen fan for years and believe this is a beautiful tribute to the band and to Freddie Mercury. Rami Malek was perfectly cast. He showed no hesitation to dive right into such a dramatic and charismatic role.

I enjoyed learning more about Freddie Mercury, the band, and the origin of many of the songs. Although, I wish the movie had included his struggle with AIDS and his death, not because I think he needed to die in the movie to give closure, but because I had hoped to see the relationship between him, his band mates, and Mary throughout his last few months. With the strong acting and wonderful script, I believe they could have brought the movie full circle with his life. This was the only reason I didn’t give it a full 5-star rating… the story was lacking a conclusion… I wanted more!

Even if you aren’t a Queen fan, this movie is worth your time. I wish I had seen this one on the big screen. If it’s still available, I highly recommend going to the theatre… see it on IMAX… get the full concert effect and enjoy every minute of this masterpiece.

You can watch the official trailers here:


Watch the original Queen Bohemian Rhapsody music video here:

https://youtu.be/fJ9rUzIMcZQ

Shadow of Okeaous by W.M. Martin

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TITLE: Shadow of Okeaous ~ Be the Light
AUTHOR: W. M. Martin

RATING OVERVIEW
Writing: ★★★★
Story: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★★
Appearance: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★ (4)

AMAZON DESCRIPTION:
When a teenage runaway named Maggie Bennett is drawn to the small but odd town of Thieves, she is unaware of what adventure awaits her. Maggie must journey to a world beyond the one she knows to undertake the trials and train to became a Guardian, all while an ancient and malefic presence is secretly haunting her every step, and it desires, more than anything, that which it once held. Journey along with Maggie as she learns about the world of the Veil, her place within it, and the Fallen hordes who want to watch it burn.

Buy it HERE on Amazon! 

THE CRITICAL POINTS
First let me say, I purchased this book directly from the author at an author event. I always enjoy meeting authors and talking about not only their stories but their process. W.M. Martin wrote this book with his daughters. Through telling bedtime stories that they participated in, they brought this book to life. I was inspired by his story and how excited his wife and children were when I spoke to them.

WRITING: Shadow of Okeaous ~ Be the Light is a self-published fantasy novel. Like most self-published novels, my own included, there are a few typos, editing issues, and formatting errors. However, none of these issues let me to put the book down. I will say, fantasy isn’t my favorite genre. Therefore, it did take me a bit longer to get through the book than I had hoped.

STORY: The story is perfect for children, young and old. However, some of the vocabulary could be challenging for younger readers. I was surprised by how much I actually enjoyed this ‘Harry Potter’ like story and am looking forward to reading the next one.

CHARACTERS: Maggie Bennett comes from a long line of strong women and although she doesn’t know it in the beginning, she discovers just how powerful she really is throughout the novel.

For me, there were a bit too many characters. I did get lost from time to time wonder who everyone was, but the main characters; Maggie, Elliot, Nancy, Lucy, Alice, and a few of the others, were very well-developed and easily recognizable throughout the story.

APPEARANCE: The cover, which was designed by Gabriela at BROSEDESIGNZ did a beautiful job bringing Maggie Bennett to life.

MY FAVORITE QUOTE:
“A single light can pierce the deepest darkness. Be the light.”

Check out my YouTube channel and the video review below… and make sure you hit subscribe so you never miss a video.