Archive for ‘Books’
152 items.
I devour lots of books, particularly fantasy and teen books. However it’s been a long time since I started a new series and enjoyed it as much as I did Rick Riordan’s “The Red Pyramid.” After wrapping up the Percy Jackson series, Rick decided to stay in the same universe, but ditched the Greek pantheon for the Egyptian gods (I can’t be the only one who read it and thought “OH MY GOD I CAN’T WAIT FOR A BIG PERCY JACKSON CROSSOVER”). ↓ Read the rest of this entry…
Comment
I love the “Artemis Fowl” books and so I was broken hearted to read the newest entry into the series. It’s not the same and it’s not the same in a bad way. ↓ Read the rest of this entry…
I’ll admit it, I like the Stephenie Plum books, and I really like the “in between the number series,” but the latest installment is anything but sizzling. The “will they, won’t they,” thing between Stephanie and Ranger has dragged out too long while her relationship with Jo Morellia isn’t even close to being romantic or passionate.
If you’re a fan then I’m sure you’ve already read the book and feel a little bit more empty on the inside. If your not a fan then definitely checkout the earlier books of the series which are actually a fun read.
I read the “Twilight” books before the current crazy fandom even knew they existed. In fact I actually enjoyed “Eclipse” though I stand by my statement that “Breaking Dawn” is the equivalent of bad fan fiction. ↓ Read the rest of this entry…
Being a long time fan of Preston & Child Novels I was thoroughly disappointed with “Fever Dream.” The book doesn’t feel like a Pendergast book and the mystery/twist serves no real purpose, but to set up the next book. There is no real ending and no kind of resolution. Everything is just left hanging. That would be acceptable if the rest of the book was readable, but it’s not. Not only is the entire premise boring, but the character motivations throughout it make no sense. If you’re a Pendergast fan then you’ll read the book no matter what I say, but if your even slightly on the fence then I’m telling you now: AVOID IT.
The Cotton Malone series has always been fun, but things went scarily down hill in Steve Berry’s “The Paris Vendetta.” Instead of focusing on Cotton, the book is an ensemble piece where no single character goes through any kind of arc. Even worse, it’s clear that it was written as a set-up for a spin-off series starring the new character of Sam Collins. Berry needs to stick to his roots of thriller mixed with some Indiana Jones.
Ian McKellen wrote the following on his official site:
THE HOBBIT’s, two films, start shooting in New Zealand in June. Filming will take over a year. Casting in Los Angeles, New York City and London has started. The script too proceeds. The first draft is crammed with old and new friends, again on a quest in Middle Earth.
The director Guillermo del Toro is now living in Wellington, close to the Jacksons’ and the studio in Miramar.
There is a twist halfway through that makes this lame video into something interesting.
So excited! I ordered “The Art of Up” from Amazon back in September, but it’s been on back-order. So my awesome BFF snagged it for me from B&N. It’s like the rest of the Pixar “Art of” books with concept, early sketches, and storyboards, but it also has a lot of information about the writing, which is why I wanted it.
It talks about Carl’s arc, how all the characters evolved through re-writes and tons of other good stuff. I just wish the actual screenplay was available for purchase or on the internet.
I love YA Fantasy. I have no shame in admitting that. The original “Spiderwick Chronicles” weren’t revolutionary, but they were fun. So I was excited when I got “Beyond The Spiderwick Chronicles” for Christmas. Yet, now that I’ve read them I’m fully disappointed. The second trilogy is a complete sell-out.
The story focuses on a whole new family with the original characters barley making cameos, but I can live with that. Gone however is the fleshed out relationships seen in the first series, which is odd because thematically, “The Spiderwick Chronicles” is all about family. Plus when the old characters do show up, they aren’t anything like how they used to be. They are kind of assholes and there is no explanation for the personality change other than bad writing.
Plot-wise there really isn’t much to the second series. It’s thinner than thin and even less engaging than the new characters. Unless you or your kids are a hardcore Spiderwick fan, this new series isn’t worth the time.
I’m not mean enough to do a list for every medium, but these various things were the worst of the worst in 2009.
- Avatar - If I didn’t know better I’d say the dialog was stolen straight from bad 80′s cartoons.
- Project Runway - The move to Lifetime and L.A. was not a good one. Calling this past season a “hot mess” would be putting it too nice.
- The Ugly Truth - I love romantic comedies but this crapfest gives all romantic comedies a bad name.
- NBC – Sure they have a few watchable shows, but on a whole the ship has sunk. When The CW and cable networks have higher ratings you know something is wrong.
- 3D Movies – I saw eight movies in 2009 in 3D and they weren’t worth it. The whole process is still too gimmicky. Talk to me again when 3D moves the medium forward.
- Halo ODST – I was super hyped for the game, but calling it a game is wrong. It turned out to be nothing more than a badly marketed expansion who’s gameplay was nothing new or fun.
- Grey’s Anatomy – My the mighty have fallen. If it wasn’t for fast forward I wouldn’t have been able to make it through the episodes that aired this fall.
- Opinions of Obama - Everyone has an opinion on Obama and I’m sick of hearing it. I’ve heard him been called Jesus incarnate and I’ve heard him refered to as the anti-christ and you know? I don’t care. The only time I have an opinion on Obama is when he interrupts prime-time TV.
- Jon and Kate – Why did they ever have a TV show? Why did they become so big? She’s a bitch, he’s stupid, and now the kids are f* up.
Although I read a lot, I don’t read enough to name the BEST books of 2009. However I devour YA fiction and feel confident that the list below is a pretty accurate one (they aren’t in any particular order):
- Fade (Wake) by Lisa McMann
- The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 5) Rick Riordan
- Fire (Graceling) by Kristin Cashore
- If I Stay by Gayle Forman
- Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor
- Garcia, Kami & Margaret Stohl. Beautiful Creatures
- Heroes of the Valley by Jonathan Stroud
- Gateway by Sharon Shinn
- City of Glass (Mortal Instruments) by Cassandra Clare
- Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins
A trend started yesterday with people making fake YA Book covers. Since those are the books I primarily read… I had to make one!
Universal has greenlit a 3D animated adaption of “The Lorax.” This has me concerned since the original animated adaption is my all time favorite Seuss-ian thing in the world. The movie is scheduled to hit theaters in 2012.
