Or, if you ask me nicely, I am giving away some review copies - just let me have an email address and your preference of mobi or epub (the pdf comes in at 35MB so is too big to send by email....).
Hi all, sorry for posting this late, had a slight family emergency but that seems to be sorted now - here's me wishing my dad well as he recovers from his surgery!
Knightfall has been on a virtual book tour since the 16th August and continues until the 29th August with an associated prize (woo hoo!).
Visit the blogs below, and be sure to have a look around at the other books they've reviewed too!
August 16th – Amina Black (www.aminablack.com)
August 17th – Raftul Misterelor (www.raftulmisterelor.wordpress.com) August 18th -Rachael’s Raving Reviews (www.rachie123abc.blogspot.com)
Just back from seeing Kick Ass 2 at the cinema, sequel to the 2010 hit about a regular guy who tries to do the right thing and become a super hero (check it out if you haven't seen it, it's awesome). First, the Kick Ass 2 trailer.
Now, it's rare for a sequel to be as good as it's predecessor (more on that below), and sadly, that's the case here. That's not to say it's bad, far from it. It's got plenty of action, extreme graphic violence, swearing inappropriately and special effects. It just seems to lack some of the 'heart' of the first film.
Slipping into SPOLIERS territory here, I found myself enjoying the sub plot of Mindy trying to find out who she really is (and it's Hit Girl, obviously) better than the central 'I want to gather a team of super violent criminals to kill Kick Ass and burn down the city just because', and the Mindy side plot wasn't that great.
The cast did a fantastic job again, and Jim Carey was excellent for the few scenes he had (whatever he might be saying about the movie in the press), but far and away Hit Girl stole the show whenever she was butchering some bad guy for the hell of it.
Overall, a good movie, and if you enjoyed the first one it's definitely worth a watch. If you haven't seen the first one, go get it now and watch it, you won't be disappointed! (And if you really want to see something at the cinema, Alan Partridge is better, in my opinion.)
Score 7/10
Now, onto films where the second film was better than the original (not the third film as in Army of Darkness or Iron Man 3 or series like Lord of the Rings where really it's just one extra long film)
Empire Strikes Back
Superman 2
Godfather part 2
Despicable Me 2 (saw it a few weeks ago with the children - amazing!)
Rambo (First Blood part 2)
Terminator 2
Aliens (many may disagree with that one)
Blade 2
The Dark Knight
X-Men 2
Spider Man 2
Star Trek 2 - The Wrath of Kahn
Dawn of the Dead (original)
Those are just from looking on my shelf, I'm sure there are many others, let me have your thoughts below!
No, not a quote from the movie, but a scene that makes me laugh out loud when I just think about it (as I'm doing now in actual fact!).
Like many people in the UK, I've enjoyed Alan Partridge as a character for many years. From his early appearances on The Day Today (particularly the scene where he believes that jockeys must be children!)
To his talk show on the BBC - Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge
To his down and out times in a Travel Lodge (Would you like me to lap dance for you...?)
And back to relative fame doing various shows fictional radio station North Norfolk Digital and Radio Norwich
If you like Alan Partridge as a character, the movie is an absolute must see. It's like an extra long episode of Alan Partridge at his best, and I really didn't want it to end. There wasn't a section that seemed forced or unnecessary , and I can honestly say that I laughed constantly through the whole thing.
I didn't think I'd see another comedy this year on a par with the Worlds End (another excellent movie), but Alan Partridge certainly exceeded my expectations, and I hope he gets a chance to appear on the big screen (or the small screen) again.
Finally, I really do have to share the smell my cheese scene, I can't get it out of my head!
I received Kyrthaba Rising as part of
review exchange with the author William Bryan Miller. It tells the
story of the surviving pockets of humanity, who live underground
after Aliens have attacked and destroyed the surface through a
nuclear assault.
Four survivors manage to insert
themselves into a virtual reality full of Orcs and magic, that may be
more than it seems, whilst the humans and androids in the underground
bunker of A3 deal with murder, intrigue, deception and a full on
alien attack.
I enjoyed the book overall, it was
very well written and with excellent editing and proofreading (I
don't think I encountered a single error that comes to mind). It
isn't what I'd normally read, but I'm glad I did, and with how it
ended, I would be keen to read books 2 and 3 to discover the rest of
the story.
My only gripe is that the reveals at
the end of the book didn't completely gel with what I'd read in the
book so far. Maybe the details of the how and why will be revealed
in later books, in which case I applaud the author for drafting such
a complex metaphysical tale!
Score 4 out of 5 stars
Review system
5 stars excellent
4 stars very good
3 stars average
2 stars below average
1 star poor
So, Peter Capaldi? He has a slightly quirky look to him, but seems a lot darker than Matt Smith and even David Tennant to some extent, I hope he has darker stories to go with it. I was hoping that the BBC would come bursting through my door at 7:25pm last night, but it didn't happen. Oh well, maybe I'll get the gig next time....
Another 5 star review for Knightfall overnight, this time from William Bryan on Goodreads (make sure to visit his blog here at http://williambryanmiller.com/) and I am also reading his debut novel Kyrathaba Rising at the moment as part of a review exchange. I'm not as fast a reader as him so I'm only about half way through, but I'm enjoying it so far. Check it out on amazon at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E3YJ4HY
It's a sci fi story set about 250 years in the future where humanity has been almost wiped out by an alien nuclear assault, and the last few pockets of humanity live deep underground. There's murder and mystery, aliens and a virtual reality that might not be all it seems!
Back to book 3 again today, I can hear Alexander preparing his torture equipment already, he can't wait to get started....
