Genre: Horror/ Thriller
Rating: 4,5/ 5
zondag 15 januari 2023
20s Movie Review - The Menu
Genre: Horror/ Thriller
Rating: 4,5/ 5
10s Movie Review - Mommy Dead and Dearest
Genre: Drama/ Domcumentary/ Crime
WEEK 2: A DOCUMENTARY
It’s a pretty disturbing documentary, hard to understand how someone can do such a thing to child. The documentary itself was pretty straight-forward, the topic was interesting, devastating, shocking and disturbing.
Rating: 3/ 5
zondag 8 januari 2023
Book Review - The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Series: -
They are trained by the centaur Chiron in the arts of war and medicine, but when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, all the heroes of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, and torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows. Little do they know that the cruel Fates will test them both as never before and demand a terrible sacrifice.
They are trained by the centaur Chiron in the arts of war and medicine, but when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, all the heroes of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, and torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows. Little do they know that the cruel Fates will test them both as never before and demand a terrible sacrifice.
Movie Review - The Pale Blue Eye
Genre: Crime/ Thriller/ Horror
Not surprisingly, after the first victim, many follow. During his search for the truth, Landor is tormented by his own demons: he is a widower, and sees before his mind’s eye his disappeared daughter.
The partnership between the elder Landor and the young Poe is by no means trouble-free, especially when Poe becomes obsessed with Lea, a stylish young lady plagued by a rare disease. Seeing Landor and Poe together is and remains somewhat uncomfortable, mainly because the film’s persistently serious tone suites Christian Bale better than his counterpart Harry Melling (best known as cousin Dudley in the Harry Potter-series). His interpretation of Poe’s character feels increasingly forced.
Through its blend of personal drama and occult mystery, “The Pale Blue Eye” ultimately tells two stories. In theory, these stories should complement each other seamlessly, but it eventually breaks up the story and make it overly explanatory. Still the well-kept picture direction and the atmospheric view of a wintry snowy landscape keep the first major film of 2023 engaging for more than two hours.
Rating: 3/ 5
10s Movie Review - God's Own Country
Genre: Drama/ Romance
I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2023 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 1: A MOVIE WITH LGBTQ+ REPRESENTATION
Rating: 4, 5/ 5
zaterdag 7 januari 2023
TV Show Review - Kaleidoscope (Mini Series)
Genre: Drama/ Crime/ Action
The story of “Kaleidoscope” is fairly standard: a group of thieves led by Leo Pap want to rob a heavily guarded vault. How they prepare and why Leo has it in for this particular safe is told in these episodes. The final episode is the actual heist. To keep the storylines clear, each episode stand for a time period. Such as seven years before the heist, five week before the heist and the day after the heist.
For example, in episode yellow you see how Leo puts together his crew, in Green Leo manages to escape from prison, Orange revolves around an FBI agent hunting the group and in Pink you follow the group six months after the heist. As a result, the episodes are fairly self-contained and it matters little whether you start with Leo’s escape or his plan to rob a safe, because the story remains the same. I think it would have worked better if each episode was the story told from different character’s perspectives. This way, it would be more of a puzzle that would eventually come together. And with that, White is the episode you are supposed to finish on, but I believe Pink is the best episode of the series and the perfect ending.
As a result, “Kaleidoscope” is still entertaining enough, but it’s a pretty standard heist story. It has a great concept, but they could have done so much more with it.
zondag 1 januari 2023
Top 10: Favorite Books of 2022
2022 was the year I finally got out of my reading slump. For not having read for quite some time, I finally discovered what I really want to read, explored new genres and authors. I had a great reading year. My goal was 20 books, I ended up reading 33, which is a big deal for me. Here are my favorite books I read this year.
A book I would have never picked up if I hadn’t read so many great things about it on social media. It’s a memoir from Jennette McCurdy, who got fame because of her role as Sam Puckett on the Nickelodeon show “iCarly”. She tells the story of how she never wanted to become an actress, but was forced into it by her mother who wanted nothing more than for Jennette to be famous. It’s an honest, raw and heartbreaking story. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
I started this series this year and “The Man Who Died Twice” is the second book in the Thursday Murder Club series. We follow a group of septuagenarians who live in an elderly community and have a murder club, where they try to solve cold cases. When people actually get murdered around them, they try to solve it. The characters are so great, I would love to be part of this group. This is a highly enjoyable whodunit and a perfect sequel. Check out my FULL REVIEW HERE.
This is the book that got me out of my reading slump. A book I received in a blind book box. Mariana Andros visits her niece Zoe after her friend Tara has gone missing. Zoe goes to Cambridge University and soon Mariane starts suspecting one of Zoe’s professors: Edward Fosca. He is a professor of Greek Tragedy and a very popular man. He even has a group of loyal female followers who themselves the Maidens. I loved the dark academia vibe and the constant tension between Mariana and Fosca. A rock solid mystery thriller. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
This was one of the surprises this year. I got this in a blind book box and I was so surprised in how good this book was and how much I ended up loving it. It’s about Jake Bonner, a teacher of creative writing and a failed writer. When one of his students shares a plot he’s been writing and Jake later learns he dies, Jake decides to use the plot himself and write a book. It turns out to be a best-selling novel, but someone has found out that the plot this book is based on, isn’t his. The book isn’t the most eventful one I read, but somehow it intrigued me. There is this constant oppressive feeling and Jake’s fear throughout the book kept me invested. There are also chapter where you actually read parts of Jake Bonner’s book. I found this really clever. I was super impressed by Jean Hanff Korelitz’ writing and can’t wait to read more of her work. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
The second book by Alice Feeney that I read and I loved it. Adam and Amelia are taking a trip to Scotland, were they will be spending the weekend together. Adam is a workaholic screenwriter who suffers from face blindness. While on their vacation, Adam and Amelia realize something is not right. The story is told from three different perspectives: Adam, Amelia and a woman named Robin. There are also chapters that are letters written to Adam by his wife, commemorating several anniversaries of their marriage. This was such a good thriller, so well-crafted. The plot twists were amazing. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
This was my introduction to Riley Sager. A book that kept me on the edge of my seat at all times. Life hasn’t been particularly kind to Jules Larsen. She was fired, dumped by her boyfriend, no place to live and broke. She stumbles upon an ad for a house sitter, in the Bartholomew building, where the rich and famous live. The amazing salary would solve all of Jules’ problems. And even though it all sounds to good to be true, Jules grabs the opportunity. But strange things are happening in the Bartholomew. The story alternates timelines and when the book started, I was immediately sucked in. And the ending had me speechless, so unexpected and original. Sager became a favorite auto-buy author for me this year. My FULL REVIEW IS HERE.
This book is an enchanting and heartwarming novel that shows that there are always other possibilities. An ode to life. In “Midnight Library” we meet Nora who is overwhelmed by the feeling that she has made wrong choices in her life, disappointing everyone. when she finds herself in the Midnight Library, a place between life and death she gets the chance to see the many ways her life could have turned out differently. Every book she opens takes her to another life. You can read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
This was the first Alice Feeney book I read and I was blown away by “His & Hers”. A woman is murdered in a parking lot. Journalist Anna Andrews is reluctant when she has to report on this police investigation. Detective Jack Harper suspects Anna’s involvement in the case, but eventually becomes a suspect himself. One of them is not telling the truth. Each chapter brought new information and I loved how the book was told from three different perspectives: his, hers and the murderer’s. And the end was so good, never saw it coming. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
This is the first in a series and a debut novel for Holly Jackson. I’m not very good at keeping up with series, but this one I will definitely continue reading. Because I absolutely loved reading this book. It follows the story of Pippa, a student who decided to write her final essay on a murder that happened in her hometown five years ago, where Andie bell was murdered and Sal Singh was arrested for it. Pip doesn’t believe that Sal did it and wants to find out what actually happened all those years ago. The format of this book was so unique and it really was a page-turner. You can read my FULL REVIEWHERE.
I would have never picked up this book if it wasn’t recommended to me, because the synopsis didn’t appeal to me at first. Let alone thinking this would eventually become my favorite of the year and even a new all-time favorite. It follows Linus Baker, who is a social worker with the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He is given the special assignment of investigating whether six magically gifted at-risk youngsters living in an orphanage on a small island may pose too great a danger to society. This book was such a warm hug, I loved every minute of it and all the characters were so loveable. And aren’t these the best books, when you don’t even expect to like it as much as you did? I am so glad I decided to pick it up. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
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