By Thea on March 31, 2008
Filed under: Western WeekSubscribe
Subscribe via email
Book Smuggler Specialties
Blogroll
Reviews by Rating
Rating System
In which we celebrate the archetypal character: The Man With No Name
Gunslinger. Outlaw. Bounty Hunter. Anti-hero. These are just a few of the adjectives used to describe the Man With No Name. Best personified in Sergio Leone’s classic Dollars Trilogy, Clint Eastwood is the most recognized and emulated figure as the character.
Clint Eastwood in A Fistfull of Dollars
Unlike traditional, good guy cowboys (the John Wayne types), the Man With No Name is an outsider, shrouded in mystery. He plays by his own rules, and makes decisions that will benefit himself, according to his own views of justice or questionable morals. Although the line between right and wrong is blurred for this man, he will surprise occasionally by showing his soft spot for the helpless and downtrod…but at the same time is a bounty hunter that partakes in less than lawful activities.
Clint Eastwood’s role as the nameless gunslinger in Sergio Leone’s Dollars trilogy–A Fistfull of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly–is probably the most easily recognized character of the Spaghetti (read: Italian made) Western *cue Ennio Morricone music*. Although it is debateable as to whether or not Eastwood’s character was the same man in all three movies, he is the central figure of the trilogy, wearing the same clothes, and going about his business.
Toshiro Mifune as Kuwabatake Sanjuro in Yojimbo
Although Sergio Leone’s version of the Man With No Name is the most iconic, the original inspiration for Eastwood’s character is rooted in Japanese cinema (just as other classic westerns, such as the to be reviewed The Magnificent Seven, pay homage to Japanese cinema and vice versa–as kind of an organic, dynamic relationship). Akira Kurosawa, Japanese director extraordinaire, made a movie in 1961 called Yojimbo, which in turn was inspired by American westerns. However, instead of the usual moral hero tale, Kurosawa’s hero remains nameless, and refers to himself as Kuwabatake Sanjuro, or Mulberry Field 30 Year old, who is a lone samurai (a ronin). Sergio Leone’s A Fistfull of Dollars (the first of the Dollars Trilogy) is actually a remake of Yojimbo.
In the Japanese movie, Sanjuro is a wandering samurai that chances upon a dry, small town. He is startled by the bad condition of the town (chancing upon a dog with a human hand in its mouth), and seeks out more information, only to discover hooligans who don’t like outsiders. Sanjuro finds that two rival ganglords have control of the town, and hires his services as a bodyguard out to one of the gangs (after dispatching of a few men), and manages to slowly outwit both gangs through subtle tactics, leading to the eventual annihilation and spilling of blood for both sides. In A Fistfull of Dollars, the plot is mirrored to the letter, substituting the southwest for Feudal Japan, and pistols for samurai katanas. (It is in this Leone film that the infamous boiler plate under the serape as body armor is used to beat Ramon Rojo in a pistol-rifle fight).
Antonio Banderas as El Mariachi in Desperado
Since Clint Eastwood, the archetype has grown. In other westerns, the Man with No Name is further explored in later Clint Eastwood films as “The Stranger” in High Plains Drifter, or in the later Sergio Leone film Once Upon A Time in the West with Charles Bronson as “Harmonica”. In the most recent remake of A Fistfull of Dollars and Yojimbo, Bruce Willis starred as “John Smith” in Last Man Standing. In modern, popular western movies, the archetype is revisited in Robert Rodriguez’s Mexico trilogy (El Mariachi, Desperado, and Once Upon a Time in Mexico) as the nameless man is “the Mariachi”.
Mel Gibson as the titled Mad Max; Jeremy Bulloch as Boba Fett
The Man With No Name, however, is not merely confined to Westerns–the archetype has also spread across genres and media. In the science fiction arena, the Mad Max movies, starring Mel Gibson, showcase the Road Warrior travelling across a post-apocalypse Earth. In Star Wars, Boba Fett is introduced as the bounty hunter sent after Han Solo in Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back–and remains nameless until Return of the Jedi.
In literature, Stephen King’s Dark Tower series main character and anti-hero Roland Deschain is modeled after Clint Eastwood’s role. In comic book format, there is an upcoming release of the continuation of the Man With No Name (as portrayed by Clint Eastwood) early this year.
As classic heroes as pilars of virtue, honesty, friendship, truth, etc get extremely tiresome and make me want to gag, the anti-hero, as an inherently ‘bad’ character is much more my style. Clint Eastwood will always be cooler to me than John Wayne. Batman has always been my go-to guy over do-gooder suckup Superman. Sawyer totally rules; and Jack sucks.
Where do you fall on the spectrum?
Recently, when we reviewed The Good, the Bad, and the Undead, we got to talking about how much we loved westerns, and how no one really gives them any love these days.
Thus, we welcome you to The Book Smugglers’ very own Western Appreciation Week!
For the duration of the week, we will be bringing you reviews and discussions of some of our very favorite Westerns–movies, books, graphic novels, television shows, and modern applications showing that while it may not be its heyday, the western still lives on!
Starting off with an introduction to the Spaghetti Western, we’ll discuss characters such as the iconic Man With No Name, and the great Sergio Leone’s “Dollars Trilogy”–A Fistfull of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.
We’ll then take a look at the presence of the Western and it’s influence on some modern writing by reviewing and examining Stephen King’s iconic Dark Tower series, starting with the gunslinger himself, Roland Deschain. Ana will review The Gunslinger, and Thea will give an overall intro to the Dark Tower series, and the Marvel comics that focus on young Roland, in The Gunslinger Born.
We’ll also give reviews for some of our favorite western classics from back in the day, with Ana sharing her love for Once Upon a Time in the West, and Thea giving it up for The Magnificent Seven.
While the Western has been brought to life on the big screen, television shows also have been a major media for gunslingers, both old and new. Ana will take us through modern shows that immortalize the western by reviewing the outstanding HBO series Deadwood, and also the space cowboy cult favorite, Firefly.
Thea will take a look at the modern western on the big screen, from remakes like 3:10 to Yuma, and also examining the influences in other movies, such as Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill series, and the re-invention of the Man With No Name.
And we’ll round out the week with a focus on the iconic music from the genre, and a final poll, for our favorite Westerns of all time.
So take a seat, and we hope you enjoy the busy week ahead!
The countdown begins! In approximately five days, one of the best frakking shows ever to grace the television screen will be back for it’s fourth and final season.
Battlestar Galactica, simply put, it is awesome. In every respect. Political intrigue? Check. Strong, fully fleshed out characters that face soul searching identity and moral questions? Check. Incredible plot lines that keep you riveted and wanting more? Check.
BSG is, in my opinion, the flat out best show on television. Although I am a confessed Lost junkie, the ABC survivor drama cannot hold a candle to the consistantly incredible Battlestar Galactica.
In honor of the show’s return this Friday, I’m doing a countdown of my top 10 reasons why I love this show, and why you should tune in–especially if you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon yet.
10. The Acting
It’s not every day you get seasoned veterans like Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell as leads in a television series. His Adama and her Roslin are flawless–and I can’t for the life of me understand why they, and the show in general, are snubbed year after year at the the Emmys and Golden Globes. Kyra Sedgwick’s and Hugh Laurie got nothing on Mary McDonnell and EJO.
9. The awesome special effects
Honest to goodness, great quality CGI. Not fake looking, or cheeseball. Even from the get go with the miniseries and the initial cylon attack, I was riveted by the space battle scenes.
8. The Toasters
The new wave of Cylons are highly improved over the OG centurion models–both stell and organic versions. I’m pretty sure the entire male population will agree with me on this one.
7. The Well-Imagined Universe
The Cylons were created to make life easier for the Twelve Colonies. After the first Cylon War, they disappeared…and after 40 years of silence, return to exterminate their former masters. The lore and mythos behind the colonies, including the lost 13th colony–Earth–is deep, well rounded, and fully realized.
6. The War Drama
The strain of war is omnipresent, and tough decisions need to be made–and the tension is felt from high ranking officers down to the civvies. Just ask Admiral Cain.
5. The compelling, strong, intelligent, beautiful, complex female characters
I consider it a great find when a show has one such female lead character, but BSG has these incredible characters in abundance. They are flawed, frakups, toasters, and saviors–not just sideplots or set decoration.
4. The Man Candy
I am not completely shallow. Really.
3. The Relationships
There is romance aplenty on Galactica, for those who are into ’ships. Be forewarned that they are not happily ever after, they are complicated and messy–and brilliantly so.
2. The Question of Humanity
Something Razor addressed with subtle brilliance–humans making themselves single-minded weapons, and machines making themselves biological…it is an issue at large in the whole show. What exactly makes humans, humans? Can Cylons who feel emotion, made of flesh and blood, and possess free will be human too?
1. The Quest for Earth
Will Starbuck lead them to salvation, or to ruin? Will they find the Thirteenth Colony after all?
Only one season, and we will know. And I can’t frakking wait.
Battlestar Galactica returns with the Season 4 premiere on Friday, April 4 at 10/9 C.
For this week’s ponderings: What is your favorite ’80s Romance/Comedy movie?
Heathers – 3 High school bullies, all named Heather, get what they deserve in this very dark comedy.
Big - What if you could grow up overnight? Tom Hanks at his comedy best but clearly ready to move on to drama.
Top Secret - a spy movie from the same creators of Airplane. With a very young Val Kilmer dancing and singing as Nick Rivers
Spaceballs – Screwball comedy by Mel Brooks in a parody of Star Wars : May the schwartz be with you (whatever that means)
Airplane -
“Ladies and gentleman, this is your stewardess speaking. We regret any inconvenience the sudden cabin movement might have caused. This is due to periodic air pockets we encountered. There’s no reason to be alarmed and we hope you enjoy the rest of your flight. By the way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane? “
And then, panic and hilarity follow
When Harry Met Sally - Romantic comedy about whether men and women can ever be really friends – witty dialogue, superb soundtrack and THAT scene in the coffee shop.
The Blues Brothers – Two petty criminals on a mission from God to save the orphanage they grew up .
Dirty Dancing – Love story between a rich girl and a man from the wrong side of the track – Good songs and dancing senquences and Patrick Swayze looking mighty fine.
“Nobody puts baby in the corner”
Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure – Two dumb , sweet guys travel through time learning history lessons in loco. As the incredible dudes would say:
Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure – Two dumb , sweet guys travel through time learning history lessons in loco. As the incredible dudes would say:
“Be excellent to each other.
and Party on, dudes! “
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – Possibly the greatest teenage movie ever made – Who didn’t dream about skipping school after watching the great day that Ferris had? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
Tootsie - Unemployed actor dresses up as a woman to get a job in a soap opera and then falls in love with co-star. A lot of confusion ensues – one of the greatest performances by Dustin Hoffman.
and Party on, dudes! “
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – Possibly the greatest teenage movie ever made – Who didn’t dream about skipping school after watching the great day that Ferris had? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
Tootsie - Unemployed actor dresses up as a woman to get a job in a soap opera and then falls in love with co-star. A lot of confusion ensues – one of the greatest performances by Dustin Hoffman.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit – In a world where cartoons are real and live side by side with humans, Roger Rabbit it framed with murder and must prove his innocence. The mixture of animation and live actors is pure genius. The movie also features the most improbable marriage in the history of cinema.
Title: Sunshine
Author: Robin McKinley
Review number: Ana’s 30th and Thea’s 24th
Genre: (Urban) Fantasy, Horror
Stand alone or series: Stand alone
Summary:
They took her clothes and sneakers. They dressed her in a long red gown. And they shackled her to the wall of an abandoned mansion-within easy reach of a figure stirring in the moonlight. She knows that it is a vampire. She knows that she’s to be his dinner, and that when he is finished with her, she will be dead. Yet, when light breaks, she finds that he has not attempted to harm her. And now it is he who needs her to help him survive the day…
Review
First impressions:
Ana: This is my second book by Robin McKinley (first was Beauty) and I am really well impressed with her style. Her storytelling is very distinctive and Sunshine has a magical quality to it – although it is mix of fantasy/horror story in its core, there is still a fairy tale feel and it’s all down to the almost lyrical way the story unfolds.
If I had to choose one word to describe the book, it would be: Delicious. Deliciously mysterious, funny, scary – a veritable page turner from page 1.
Thea: I am a big fan of Robin McKinley’s. On this site, I have reviewed The Blue Sword, which is a classic. I’ve also read some of her other works, such as Beauty and The Hero and the Crown, which are some of my favorite books ever, period.
I was very excited to finally read an ‘adult’ novel by Ms. McKinley, and delved into Sunshine with reckless abandon. And the book was everything I had hoped for…initially. The first half flies by at a nice pace, with the title character’s signature quirky narrative adding levity to a darker fantasy horror story. However, about halfway through the book, I found myself losing interest. The same narrative that was so intriguing and fun initially became lengthy, meandering and frankly–boring. It took me over a week to finish this book, and by the end I was skimming. If I had to pick a word to describe this one, I would say: disappointing. It started off so strongly, and then petered out and made me lose interest. Which makes me sad.
On the plot:
Ana: Sunshine is an ordinary girl who lives in an ordinary small city somewhere in America. She lives a normal life, raised by her mother, surrounded by her family, friends and boyfriend. She works everyday at the Family diner’s as the chief baker- her cinnamon rolls are stuff for legend.
Until one day, she decides to drive to the Lake and is kidnapped. By Vampires. And this is when we find out that the world she lives in albeit much like ours, is not ordinary. At all.
It is rather a world where humans coexist, in a sometimes uneasy way, with other supernatural beings: demons, were-creatures, witches, warlocks and the most dreaded of them all :the vampires. It is never clear to us what has happened but at some point in history there was a War between Others and humans and the human population has been decimated – few survive and some towns have been completely destroyed. It is expected that in 100 years the humans will all be either dead or subservient to the vampire menace.
So with a horrible certainty that she is going to die, as no one has ever survived an encounter with vampires, Sunshine is taken to a mansion in the outskirts of the Lake where she is chained to a wall. And she realises that she is not alone: there is another being , also chained to the wall and when she realises it is a vampire , she understands that she is there to be his meal. But surprisingly, he has no interest in feeding from her: he is also being kept captive and is bent on thwarting their plans and it’s then clear, that not all vampires are evil. So, they strike up an odd conversation and an uneasy alliance is born between the vampire Constantine (Con for short) and Sunshine, when we realise that Sunshine herself is not an ordinary girl either. Quite the contrary, she is the daughter of a most powerful warlock and she has dormant powers of her own who erupt now at this time of need. They manage to escape and go their separate ways.
Sunshine then thinks that all is left behind and hopes to resume her normal life – but nothing can ever be normal anymore. She has to face the growing magic within herself and the danger that it poses to her mind and her body. She also has to make choices with regards to her place in the world – is she to carry on being a baker in a small town cafe or is she to join forces with the people that fight the Others. And then Constantine comes back and things get even more complicated.
In a world where nothing comes easily and no one is what they seem, Sunshine needs to make up her mind. But who is friend and who is foe? What is she to do with her magic and with her growing feelings for Constantine? And more, where can we get a recipe for Cinnamon rolls?
Thea: There is a lengthy plot line after Sunshine returns home from her terrifying ordeal at the Lake house involving the supernatural police, aka the SOF. This book is an urban fantasy at its core, right down to the involvement and creation of law enforcement that deals specifically with Others (or supernatural beings). Unfortunately, the whole SOF storyline was just plain…muddled. Kind of boring. A lot of bureaucracy without much payoff.
The second half of the story focuses on a growing alliance between Sunshine and Con, and their double team to try and stop the evil vampire that had them bound in chains at the lake house. When the action finally does take place (much later in the book) it is a pretty cool showdown.
On the characters:
Ana: To be honest, although many characters were interesting, I didn’t think any of them were really fully developed , except for Sunshine. This is HER book and it feels that way throughout. I did like other characters though, specially mysterious Mel and alluring Constantine but I just loved Sunshine. How she was funny, ironic and self-deprecatory. I loved that she was completely bipolar: how she would play down the events one time or extrapolate them five seconds later. She felt very real, I could relate to the fact that she went through a lot and that it was extremely difficult to come to terms with the changes in her life – with the changes in her own body and mind. And in her heart, once she meets Constantine.
Thea: Ok I am gonna be completely honest here–I do not see this book as having any romance in the slightest. I feel like Sunshine and Con are friends with a special understanding and bond, but don’t really see the romantic angle between them. But, that’s just me. Or rather, maybe I can see how it is supposed to be more ‘romantic’ but it just doesn’t really work for me.
In any case, so far as characters go, Sunshine is the only one that you ever really get to know (well, duh, it’s told from the first person with Sunshine as the narrator). Even at that, I don’t really ‘get’ Sunshine. Like Ana says, she is bipolar. She starts off the book being a girl working in the bakery everyday with her family–she doesn’t eat meat or kill spiders because she likes animals. She’s more reserved, but maybe going a little crazy with the routine of her life and longs for something more. The narrative is fun, quirky and easy to read. All the way through that initial conflict at the lake house, things move pretty smoothly and I understand Sunshine’s thoughts and feelings. However, as the book progresses, things get more muddled and boring. I couldn’t keep up with the story because of all of Sunshine’s weird interjections. She would be mild mannered at one point, and then completely ballistic at another. It was awkward to read. That said, this is a story of ’self discovery’ and Ms. McKinley convincingly does this with Sunshine’s character (even if I don’t exactly like or understand her).
Again, like Ana says, there aren’t too many other characters you really get to know. Which makes sense, because the story is written in a sort of stream of consciousness method, with Sunshine only seeing things the way she wants to without too much explanation to the readers. Effective as a method of making Sunshine “real”, but incredibly frustrating to read at times. For instance, she constantly refers to her mother, and that she and her mom don’t get along. But there aren’t any interactions between the two! For someone who is very important to Sunshine’s life and development as a woman, it’s annoying not ever being able to see the two together. Sunshine has many interactions with Charlie (her stepfather), Mel (her boyfriend), Paulie (her baking apprentice), but hardly any with her mother–besides the mentions that her mother is paranoid and gives Sunshine a bunch of charms and wards to keep her safe, which now reside in the glove compartment of her car. Hmph.
The other character you get to know…somewhat…is Con, the vampire. He’s a strange guy. Naturally, he’s dead and a vampire, so being strange is understandable. But I didn’t like him at all either. He probably speaks a total of 1 page worth of dialogue in the entire story. Serious.
Then there are other characters that you meet but don’t really get to know or have any explanation about them whatsoever. The “goddess of pain” who works for the SOF, for example, is referred to as the goddess. I don’t have the slightest clue what she really is. Is she really a goddess? Is she human? Why on earth do they call her the goddess of pain? Is it a cutesy nickname? But then why do people call her ‘the goddess’ to her face?
Ms. McKinley knows how to write convincing characters, and I can’t really fault her for not introducing us to others–as I mentioned before, the story is told from a very convincing POV, and anything that Sunshine would not linger on or think of does not make an appearance.
However infuriating that may be!
Final Observations, recommendation and rating:
Ana: The fact that the author at no point stops the narrative to explain what exactly is going on, how things happen in this world was very alluring to me. There was no paragraph that said “The war happened between so and so, so many years ago, etc”. In fact, characters talked about events in ilo tempore, like we the readers, were also part of their world and therefore in the know. I can see how people may find that frustrating but I really enjoyed it – it intrigued and mystified me.
The first part of the novel was my absolute favorite – the point of no return for Sunshine, when she discovers, no she remembers who she really is.
Because, for me, it was a story about identity: I loved the unpredictability of it all – the fact that everyone had secrets and no one were what they seemed to be –in this case taking the saying appearances can be deceiving to the highest degree. It was about Sunshine’s own identity – her father’s daughter? Her mother’s daughter? Both? Her struggle to understand what she would become if she accepted all of the aspects of her personality. Even more, what she would become if she accepted that not all Others were evil – that there can be exceptions – her acceptance of her own self came together with her acceptance of her bond with Con.
This book was an amazing tale and if there is one thing to say against is that there wasn’t enough. There wasn’t enough of Sunshine, enough of her friends and family, enough of the background, enough of Con. In the end it felt like a lot more could have been said and a lot more could have been learnt. One can hope that this is only the beginning of a series.
Thea: If you couldn’t tell already, I found the narrative style both intriguing and incredibly frustrating. Too much of a good thing, in my opinion. By the second half of the book, I was growing oh so tired with Sunshine’s nonstop musings and anecdotes. Had the book been 100-200 pgs shorter, it would have been much better, in my opinion. There probably is a good 100 pgs where nothing happens, and is relegated to Sunshine thinking about things. Waaay too much for me. Not that I am an ADD reader, but the stream of consciousness thing needs some action to keep my interest, especially when you’re 300 pages deep and there is no end in sight. The final fight only takes about 20-30 pages in comparison, so…you get the picture.
So far as Sunshine’s identity is concerned, she goes through a bunch of changes, first remembering her parentage, and then later reconciling her different “selves” (sun/tree, animal, dark). The first revelations of who she really is and her abilities as the daughter of the great Onyx Blaise is captivating. I loved the flashbacks she had with her grandmother, and her later worries about becoming a “dark cross”. Things get a bit confusing with the tree/deer/dark self ponderings (which she ponders at great length), and again had this been cut down a bit, it would have been much more effective.
And…unfortunately, I could give a hoot about her and about Con (who is more of a side character, as everyone is a side character to Sunshine and her thoughts). Sure, I wanted them to “win” at the end, but I didn’t have a real connection to either of them.
Here’s the best way to put it: Sunshine kinda felt like that one girl who talks incessantly about herself every time you see her–which is cool in small doses because she does lead an interesting life, and you keep her around as a friend for that reason. But imagine you are stuck with her on a looooong road trip, no other passengers, no breaks, and she won’t stop with the stories. By the third hour together, all you want to do is grab her by the neck and tell her to shuddufugup.
That’s how I felt about Sunshine by the end of the book.
Notable quotes/ Parts:
Ana: I hope I will not come across as a horny teenager but I LOVED the almost-sex between Sunshine and Con. I thought it was hot and funny. Actually I loved all encounters between Sunshine and Con – how she could not understand how he could be so cool and calm. How she thought her feelings for him. Their conversations were hilarious: because she was so human and he was not.
Her thoughts whenever she was next to him were so funny. For example, I keep remembering this bit, further down the road, after they almost get it on, when they touch hands, this is what comes to her mind and it’s a perfect example of the awesomeness of both Sunshine and the writer: “His fingers curled around mine. I had a Senssurround Dolby flash of the Ten Seconds That Didn’t Go Anywhere, but I hit the mental censor button and it went poof” LOL.
Thea: My favorite parts of the book are in the lake house, with Sunshine chained to one wall and Con chained to the other. Her initial description of Con as a vampire had me in giggles, especially when she compares him to a bag of mushrooms you have in the fridge, and you can’t really decide if they are still good, or if you should just toss them.
The almost-sex scene came out of nowhere for me–I actually did a double take when I read “and then his dick got hard” (no joke). It creeped me out. I mean…he’s dead. Con is dead, and not human, and looks like an old mushroom. Ick. Plus Con acts like a robot the whole time…just…weird. Didn’t work for me.
Rating:
Ana: 8 Excellent. An easy read, funny and scary at times and which I highly recommend.
Thea: 6 Good, Recommend with Reservations. I loved the first half of the book, it moved quickly and I couldn’t wait to read more (I would have easily given it an 8 rating at that point). The second half took me forever to slog through, and even if Sunshine was convincing as a character and the narrative unique, I can’t give it higher than a 6 because the overall reading experience was so frustrating.
Last Thursday’s episode, 4×08 Meet Kevin Johnson, marked the beginning of a mini-break until Lost returns on April 24th with 6 more episodes to round out the season. With this pause, we decided to evaluate season 4, how it stacks up thus far, and what we are looking forward to when the show returns!
*Note: We will be discussing everything that has aired so far, so if you haven’t watched the show and do not want to be spoiled, then look away!*
Overall Impressions:
So far, we have to say season 4 is doing a good job with answering questions and making some key reveals–however we are somewhat disappointed in the quality of writing, especially with these last few episodes. There have only really been two truly great episodes, while the rest range from mediocre to flat-out terrible *cough–Eggtown–cough*. While we appreciate that the writers are trying to move in the direction of answering questions, and the flash-forwards and decision to take some characters off-island is incredibly brave…it’s just the actual execution of some of these ideas falls short.
We love that we now know Charles Widmore is financing the frieghter folks and that he orchestrated the fake plane crash. We love the idea that the Island wants (needs) the Oceanic Six to return…but why are these reveals made with some of the worst dialogue imagineable, e.g. “You can’t kill yourself Michael, the Island won’t let you!” (COME ON). The contrived terribleness of The Tempest station and the deadly!gas! countdown, the ludicrous court scenes in Eggtown (“Do you LOVE the defendant?”), the complete lack of character continuity (Claire mourns Charlie for 10 seconds in 4×01 The Beginning of the End and then that’s it? She’s discussing baby caring techniques and serving coffee with Kate? Uhhh WTF?), and most importantly the unnecessary kiss of death to Karl and possibly Danielle…well, let’s just say we’re not particularly thrilled with these developments. Maybe we just want our cake and eat it too with this wish for solid character development, compelling plot reveals and outstanding writing…but this is what Lost has been about from the start. It’s a bit disappointing really, to have stumbling now.
That said, there was one particular episode this season that could possibly be one of the best episodes EVER. And that is a shining beacon of hope in the murk.
Best Moments:
The best moment so far HAS to be the phone conversation between Desmond and Penny in 4×05 The Constant.
Desmond and Penny in The Constant
This scene brought tears to our eyes. Beautifully written, beautifully acted, beautifully filmed and edited. The scene is so incredibly powerful and (dare I say it) epic…truly brilliant, classic Lost doing what they do best.
Other honorable mentions include: the reveal that Michael is the saboteur on the freighter, the experiment scenes with Daniel Faraday (the time lapse of the payload signal reaching the island in 4×02, the maze and hemmoraging of Eloise in 4×05), the discovery of a polar bear skull wearing a Dharma collar in Tunisia, the revelation that Sayid is a hitman working for Ben off-island, the casting of Jeff Fahey (the Lawnmower Man himself!) as Frank Lapidus.
Worst Moments:
Good Ol’ Benry and the Ham
Oh, where to begin! The rabbit out of the arse creation of a completely new hatch called the Tempest which can whoosh! incapacitate everyone on the island with poison smoke, the reveal that Benry is a prancing wiz in the kitchen, the reveal that Goodwin’s wife has a moleymoleyMOLE that deserves recognition in the credits as a cast member, the incredibly bad writing of the entire courtroom scene in Eggtown, the reasoning Kate’s mother has for not testifying against her daughter in the same episode (how is she still alive by the way? Terminal cancer my foot!), the writing of Locke as he morphs from badass cool island channeller to whiney pissy lost leader (apparently from the Jack school of communication and leadership), the stupid completely unneccessary bitch-fight between Charlotte and Juliet, Charlotte in general, Miles in general (the epic Milesface versus Jackface showdown), should we keep going?
Best Episode:
Gotta be The Constant. Hands down. Not only was this episode brilliant in terms of a mindblowing reveal that Desmond’s consciousness actually IS travelling in time, but the writing, acting, filming and editing was superb. The characters were real and vulnerable, the dialogue was not cheesy in the slightest, and it had that perfect blend of tasteful emotion with frakking cool SF elements–in other words, Lost’s bread and butter. BRAVO! More of this, please! 1×04 Walkabout will always be our ultimate favorite episode, but believe you me, The Constant has cracked the top 10.
Worst Episode:
Hmmm, toughie *snorts* Eggtown was a complete waste of time. Besides the last second revelation that Kate’s son is Aaron (which us spoiler whores knew about since the hiatus), this was a craptastic snoozefest of an episode. The courtroom scenes were ridiculous, the writing of Kate and Sawyer was awful, Claire and Locke were acting exceptionally strangely and inconsistent with other episodes…just all around terrible. Can the triangle end already? Please? Pretty pretty please, just DIE stupid triangle from hell!
Sorry. It really bugs us that this crap eats up whole episodes. It was cute for a season or two. We’re in season 4 now. Time to move on.
Best Revelation:
Charles Widmore is the man on the outside
Has to be the reveal that Charles Widmore is the man on the outside, running the freighter and trying to get access to the island. Finally, the curtain is pulled back and we have a definitive villain. Sort of. Even if the reveal was cheesy as hell and felt like a data dump, it’s a concrete answer! Huge reveal, and another piece of the puzzle falls into place.
Worst Revelation:
Ken Leung as Miles and Kid Omega
We’re sticking with The Tempest. Mmm or possibly the disappointing reveal that Miles didn’t choke on his grenade breakfast and is still alive. Can’t stand that guy. Probably runoff from hatred of his LAME character in X3: The Last Stand. Pufferfish face boy. At least let him be the REAL Quill (NOT Kid Omega he is incorrectly listed as) that can shoot barbs out of his entire body. What good is it to have a barbed face? Pathetic.
Best Conversation/Dialogue:
Can we use The Constant convo between Des and Penny again? No? Hmm, in that case let’s go with that badass Sayid at the beginning of his centric, 4×03 The Economist.
Sayid Jarrah: torturer, hitman, badass
SAYID: It appears you were right about the 5-iron.
MAN 1: well, uh, enjoy your round, don’t worry about the wager. All in good fun.
SAYID: No, you won. Allow me to pay you.
MAN: No, it’s fine. Thank you, it’s…
SAYID: I insist, Mr. Avellino.
And that’s the end of Mr. Avellino. Not as cool as “My name is Sayid Jarrah, and I am a torturer.” But…it’s still pretty damn badass.
Worst Conversation/Dialogue:
Although the scene between Tom and Michael (with cheeseball “Meet Kevin Johnson” title drop) or Benry’s channeling of Chucky with his “Then consider yourself one of the good guys!” line in the last episode are contenders, the winner has to be the miraculous convo between Jin and Bernard in 3×07 Ji Yeon. All of a sudden Jin can speak pretty solid english? This from “Udders!” Jin? And he even knows words like Karma? COME ON. Somehow Bernard’s little fishing trip expedition with Jin convinces him to take back Sun? Puh-lease.
Expectations for the rest of the season:
Well, we are certainly expecting the writers to pick up some serious slack! We felt that the writing for The Beginning of the End, The Economist, and The Constant was very well done, right on the money. Confirmed Dead also was a solid episode, although a bit heavy handed with the WTF!POLARBEAR! mindfraks every commercial break. Even with the crap melodrama soap opera writing of episodes like The Other Woman and Ji Yeon somehow was marginally redeemed by the superb quality acting (Yunjin Kim and Elizabeth Mitchell ROCK).
So, we implore you, dear writers–no more babydaddy drama, no more Kate waffling, no more terrible blunt reveals without finesse or character! Oh, and Danielle better not be dead.
We know it’s a tall order, but with such beautiful episodes like The Constant, we KNOW the writers and show runners are capable of delivering the goods. We’ll be glued to our screens for 4×09.
Title: By Arrangement
Author: Madeline Hunter
Review number: 29
Genre: Medieval romance
Stand alone/series: stand alone
Summary: Outraged by her unwilling betrothal to a common merchant and infatuated with a handsome knight of the royal court, medieval Lady Christiana Fitzwaryn pleads with her fianc? to end this misalliance arranged by King Edward of England. For personal and political reasons of his own, David de Abyndon refuses to renounce the marriage and begins a gentle but resolute seduction of his innocent bride. As Christiana awakens to the painful realities of her first love and becomes a part of David’s London world, she learns to cherish the husband she first despised. David tries to shield her from his old enemies and a mysterious French familial connection as he secretly assists King Edward in planning an invasion of France. This first novel in a planned trilogy intertwines the difficulties of David and Christiana’s marriage with a subplot that contains both political and personal peril as well as a lively cast of secondary characters. Just enough historical detail of 14th-century England enhances a love story that culminates in the sacking of a French city and the revelation of David’s true identity.
Why did I read the book: good reviews and I wanted to try a new author to me.
Review:
By Arrangement is a romance set in medieval times and it’s the story of Lady Christiana Fitzwaryn and David de Abyndon, a merchant from the City of London. She is a young woman who is caught in bed with the man she believes herself in love with and as a ward to the King, is immediately forced to get married to avoid ruin. Her husband to be is David, who has dealings with the Court which are not very clear to begin with but basically he agrees to marry her in exchange of some commercial rights which he had to pay the King for. And since the King could not afford to tell anyone where the money was coming from , he included Christiana in the bargain , you know, the killing two rabbits with one stone coup.
Now Christiana is furious. First, because she loves the man who compromised her and in all her innocence and naivety believes he will come around and marry her and second because as a lady, marrying a merchant is a step-down in the celebrity scale. But David, once he is set on something, will not let go and he wants Christiana. Just like that. And so they fight, they make up, the get married, there is a stupid Big Misunderstanding to temper with their relationship , she gets caught up in his mysterious dealings, he saves her. The end. You can see where I am going here.
I wanted to like this book , I really did. The writing is good, the historical background well researched and interesting with the 100 years war between France and England looming in the horizon and the interesting details about the merchants and guilds of London in Medieval times but given that a romance novel is essentially about the Hero and the Heroine and I could not stomach either of them, I guess it is not a surprise that after a few days, the more I think about it, the less I like it.
I was never too comfortable about the Hero, David, but I think that was the author’s intention . David is not one of those honourable heroes that would never do anything wrong in their lives – most of what he says to Christiana are lies and even though his love for her keeps him from turning into a veritable villain, there is still enough darkness in him to make him a complex character and it is in facing his lies and the reasons behind them that Christiana makes the jump from naïve teenager to woman – David in the end, thinks to himself – He has loved the girl, but he would worship the woman. Still, because I (or Christiana) never had a complete knowledge of what his was up to until the very end, we could not trust him, thus keeping me from falling in love with the story.
And that is as nice as I can be about my experience whilst reading the book. This is what I really want to say:
The hero is a jerk. There, I said it. I understand that the author probably wanted to show that darkness is possible in romance heroes and I am all for it. I really am, I like dark, tortured, not all black and white heroes, – but when a hero uses sex as weapon to subjugate the heroine, when his lies permeate the whole story until the very last chapter, when he is a condescending SOB with a Machiavellian personality and even his inner dialogue is shrouded in mystery even to the reader, when we don’t know what really moves him – well, then, this is when I draw a line. Especially when some of his last thoughts in the book, right there when the story is near its end, he considers killing his brother in law, who is his wife most adored brother, for a profitable gain? Nope, this is not what I want to read in my romance novels: I can take broody, crude, whoremonger, dark, and tormented. I can not take David de Abyndon.
I hate writing negative reviews but not as much as I hate wasting my precious time with books I do not like. Still, I read very positive reviews around romanceland – so maybe it is just me.
Notable quotes/Parts: This is going the be notable not because it’s good but because it’s bad: David throughout the book kept calling Christiana, “girl”, or “my girl” in a very condescending tone which did my head in.
Additional Thoughts: Nothing to add.
Verdict: I think there are much better medieval romance novels out there.
Rating: 4 Bad, but not without some merit, namely the writing.
Reading next: Sunshine by Robin Mckinley.
Title: The Mist
Novella by Stephen King
Movie directed by Frank Darabont; starring Thomas Jane
Today the film adaptation of Stephen King’s novella The Mist hits stores. Previously published in Skeleton Crew, the novella was marketed on its own shortly before the movie came out in theaters.
A bit of background first: Skeleton Crew is King’s second published short fiction anthology, and contains 22 pieces of work (including this novella, and two poems). I had read this book a while back when I was in middle school, so my memory was a bit rusty. When I heard about the movie last year, I decided to go out for a reread. A bit older now and with more of a SK/horror repertoire, rereading The Mist was a whole new experience.
As an earlier King work, The Mist is a solid, frightening story. The novella opens with a terrifying storm shaking the lake house of the Drayton family in a small Maine town. The next morning the family surveys the damage done and sees a thick, ominous mist gathered over the edge of the lake which appears to be slowly rolling in. David Drayton, the father and story narrator, has some misgivings about leaving his wife behind and the incoming mist, but decides to go into town for supplies. Drayton takes his son Billy and annoying lawyer neighbor, Brenton Norton, hops along for the ride as well.
In the town grocery store, it’s pandemonium. The power is out, so the checkers have to work everything out by calculator and hand written receipts. Many of the townspeople have the same instinctual idea as Drayton: to load up on supplies. Things get even more complicated as the mist rolls in, and cloaks the town. Something causes the store’s generator to hiccup, and a few men (Drayton and store manager Ollie among them) try to find out what the problem is–turns out something has blocked the external vent. One of the workers, a young innocent redshirt named Norm, goes outside to fix the problem…and is attacked by sinister tentacles and sucked out into the mist.
Drayton and Ollie try to convince the people in the store of what they saw, and warn them against going outside, but to no avail. Norton and a few similar minded individuals refute Drayton and Ollie’s crazed stories, and decide to venture outside. They disappear into the thick fog, screaming. When the remaining survivors finally see one of the creatures in the mist, full scale panic hits. The store is thrown into chaos, and divisions are made. Mrs. Carmody, holy-roller and previously ignored as Old Testament crazy by most of the townspeople, now becomes prophet-like in the eyes of the survivors. Incensed and riding this wave of mass paranoia, Mrs. Carmody demands that the end of days is at hand, humanity is being punished for their sins and the only way to appease the vengeful God is through human sacrifice. The smaller, other faction of survivors led by David Drayton fight against Mrs. Carmody, and eventually make their own stand and leave the store to brave the mist outside.
Poor Norm meets what’s in the mist
The novella, by itself is very good. It is classic King, involving multiple characters and a truly scary plot, all the way down to its ambiguous ending. After reading the novella, I was hesitant to watch the movie, but boy am I glad I did.
When I left the theater, I was shocked to my very core–this was not what I read in the novella, and not what I was expecting…in a very, very GOOD way. Frank Darabont, the writer/director of other Stephen King adaptations such as The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile manages to yet again improve on an already superior work by King.
This is one movie that is BETTER than the book.
It begins with a still shot of David Drayton (played by the dependable Thomas Jane), painting a cover for an upcoming movie (Dark Tower shoutout!). The movie follows the book storyline to the letter. The storm rolls in, the mist follows, and Drayton goes into town with his son and lawyer Norton. They all hole up in the store when the monsters in the mist appear.
I felt that the movie did a wonderful job of showing the polarization of the different groups in the store, and built tensions between them incredibly well–just as the book had done. The survivors in the store divide into groups–those who believe humanity is being punished for their sins, led by a TERRIFYING Marcia Gay Harden as Mrs. Carmody; those who believe firmly in rationality and that there is nothing out there, led by lawyer Norton; and those that know something is out there, but don’t want to rush to any foolish conclusions led by David Drayton.
Drayton, Billy and company venture out into the mist
The only real difference between the book and movie is with the ending. The ending of the movie is drastically different from the short story–and makes the movie all the better for it (in fact, Stephen King himself has said that if he had thought of this particular ending, he would have written it). Frank Darabont again shows his mettle, and goes against the grain, opting for a truly shocking conclusion that you know he probably had to fight the studio tooth and nail for. This decision pushes the movie from good to truly excellent, in my honest opinion.
Not to say that the film is without fault; there are some flaws with the story–the crappy CGI for one, some unnecessary scenes involving secondary characters…but overall, this movie is one of the most haunting, terrifying stories brought to screen in a long time.
I highly recommend reading the novella, but even more I encourage everyone to watch the movie.
Rating:
Novella – 7 Very Good
Movie – 8 Excellent
Author: Lisa Kleypas
Genre: Romance (contemporary), Fiction
Stand alone or series: First book in what looks to be a new series by Kleypas
Summary: (From amazon.com)
Liberty Jones has dreams and determination that will take her far away from Welcome, Texas-if she can keep her wild heart from ruling her mind. Hardy Cates sees Liberty as completely off-limits. His own ambitions are bigger than Welcome, and Liberty is a complication he doesn’t need. But something magical and potent draws them to each other, in a dangerous attraction that is stronger than both of them.When Hardy leaves town to pursue his plans, Liberty finds herself alone with a young sister to raise. Soon Liberty is under the spell of a billionaire tycoon-a Sugar Daddy, one might say. But the relationship goes deeper than people think, and Liberty begins to discover secrets about her own family’s past.
Why did I read the book: Kristie over at Ramblings on Romance recently reviewed this one, and having no experience with “contemporaries” I decided to give it a try. Plus, I have read and enjoyed some of Ms. Kleypas’ historical romances, so what the hey.
Review:
I was pleasantly surprised by how great a book this is. Push me over with a feather and color me happy I was surprised by this one! From the Amazon reviews, and gauging from comments on other websites, there seems to be some stigma against “going contemporary” in the romance genre. I can’t imagine why, if the books are as solid as Ms. Kleypas’ Sugar Daddy. Is romance is more romantic when it is historical (and therefore more escapist)? I don’t know. But I digress.
Liberty Jones is a small town girl growing up in a town called Welcome, Texas (right off the bat, these names are boss). She lives in a trailer with her pretty young mother, and all they have in the world is each other. Liberty’s father died when she was a young girl, in an accident on an oil rig. As for extended family, all Liberty knows is her momma doesn’t like to talk about them. But this never bothered Liberty, because all she and her mom ever really needed was each other. When her mom gets pregnant (from a deadbeat boyfriend), however, Liberty is ecstatic. Her little sister Carrington is born, and is the love of Liberty’s life. She takes care of the baby as if Carrington were her own, showing her more affection and time than even her mother does. Carrington becomes Liberty’s anchor in her turbulent life. Especially after Hardy Cates.
When they first move to Welcome, 14 year old Liberty gets a first glimpse of Hardy Cates—who will become Liberty’s childhood crush and first love. As the saying goes, the first cut is the deepest. Hardy Cates is ambitious, and is Going Places. He leaves Liberty behind, despite the undeniable pull they feel towards each other, because Hardy doesn’t want to turn into his father, and he needs to get out of Welcome and never look back. Just like that, Hardy Cates leaves Liberty’s life.
Shortly after this blow, an 18 year old Liberty suffers another—her mother is killed in a car crash, leaving both her daughters behind. Liberty manages to retain custody of Carrington, but times are hard. Since her mother did not have any life insurance, and Liberty does not have a job, there are bills that need to be paid. The struggle Liberty goes through to keep Carrington, to feed and care for them both, to find a job and still keep her head up are incredibly endearing. Liberty has always wanted to go to beauty school, and by some divine benevolence is able to secure a scholarship to one of Texas’ best.
Upon earning her degree, Liberty and Carrington (now ready to start preschool) leave Welcome behind and move to Houston. Ms. Kleypas’ rich detail and careful prose lovingly brings the city to life on the page—her descriptions of Houston, from the mannerisms of the people to the temperament of the weather, make the city tangible and very real. Liberty lands a job at a top salon, and is introduced to Mr. Churchill Travis, middle aged billionaire and the best ‘sugar daddy’ catch of them all, according to Liberty’s coworkers. Churchill immediately singles out Liberty, and requests for her. Over many manicure sessions, Liberty and Churchill become good friends. (No they don’t sleep together, and Liberty doesn’t take him as her “sugar daddy”, don’t worry). Such good friends, in fact, that Churchill asks Liberty to work for him as his new personal assistant, offering her a hefty salary, and a place for her and Carrington to live in his mansion. Liberty accepts, and her life is thrown into an entirely new direction as she meets Churchill’s family—most notably, his eldest son Gage (also a successful businessman and tycoon), who has some kind of grudge against Liberty from the start. (you see where this is going, right?)
This book isn’t so heavy a romance as it is just a plain good old fashioned story. Lisa Kleypas writes a remarkable, down to earth and vulnerable character in Liberty. Her struggles with growing up, with her ethnicity, with money and raising her baby sister, all rang true to me and had me rooting for Liberty the whole way. I love the details and descriptions of everything, whether it be the sweet texture of red velvet cake during a southern summer, or driving the streets of Houston at night. I have never been to Texas (outside of the airport at Dallas Ft. Worth), but I feel like I intimately know some alluring part of it because of Ms. Kleypas’ beautiful writing.
The only major issue I had with the style of the book was the early voice for Liberty. Ms. Kleypas writes this book in the first person, which can be a lot trickier than it seems. Liberty begins the story as a young, awkward girl of 14. Her ‘voice’ (the narration), however, feels as though it belongs to an older woman. Having read some of Ms. Kleypas’ historical romance novels before, I am familiar with her signature style—and early on in Sugar Daddy, it feels as though an older, more experienced Lisa Kleypas is narrating, not a shy teen. As the story progresses and Liberty grows older, however, Liberty grows into the voice and everything clicks into place.
I loved this book, I loved the choices that Liberty made, and I can completely agree with the guy she picked. As I know I’ve said before, I am loathe to read about love triangles, but this one is mercifully brief, and ends decisively. If this is any indication as to how contemporary romance works, I’ll gladly buy more.
Notable Quotes/Parts: All of the interactions between Liberty and her smart, lovable baby sister Carrington are just wonderful. In one scene, Liberty comes home with a date to watch a movie at her place. Carrington has a different idea for how the night should go, and she puts her lucky penny in her mouth then swallows it! Eek.
Additional Thoughts: There’s a saying that you should “write what you know”—and it became abundantly clear to me while reading this novel that Ms. Kleypas has some strong connection to Texas. Sure enough, after reading her bio it seems she lived there for some time.
Also, did you know Lisa Kleypas was Miss Massachusetts in the Miss America Pageant in 1985? Pretty cool.
Verdict: Wonderful book that I will keep and definitely reread. I can’t wait for her next in the series, Blue Eyed Devil, in stores March 25, 2008!
Rating: 7 Very Good
Reading Next: Marvel Zombies by Robert Kirkman and Sean Phillips
Title: Demon Moon
Author: Meljean Brook
Review number: 28
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Stand alone/ series: second full-length novel in the Guardians series.
Summary: No one would call vampire Colin Ames-Beaumont kind, but they would call him unnaturally beautiful. For two centuries his tainted blood has kept him isolated from other vampires, sustained only by his beauty and vanity—bitter comforts, since a curse has erased his mirror reflection, replacing it with a terrifying glimpse of Chaos. Savi Murray’s insatiable curiosity had gotten her into trouble before, but she’d always escaped unscathed. Then came Colin. In the midst of Heaven, he gave her a taste of ecstasy—and of Chaos. Deadly creatures from that realm herald the return of an imprisoned nosferatu horde, and Colin and Savi’s bond is their only protection—and their only passion…
Why did I read the book: Because I loved the first one, Demon Angel.
Review:
It’s 8 months after the happenings in Demon Angel. The Gates to Hell are to be closed for 500 years after the Mega Guardian Michael won a wager against Lucifer but Earth is not yet safe. There were quite a few escapee demons who managed to get out before the shut down, some creatures such as the Nosferati still lurk around and given that a high number of Guardians have Ascended (basically moved on to the afterlife) , humans are in dire straights. At the end of Demon Angel we learnt that Hugh and Lilith would work together to protect the world: they do that by managing the SI – Special Investigations – a special division of the Homeland Security that covers up any demon and vampire activity to keep the public ignorant about their existence and also to train new guardians, human and vampires.
Yes, vampires. You see, in this universe, vampires are not all that bad because they do not feed from humans – not because they are good and honourable but because they know that if bodies start to appear, humans would start to hunt them. So it has been decided ages ago, that the smart thing to do would be to feed from other vampires. And because bloodlust is a powerful experience that comes together with body lust and the vampire usually cannot stop himself from also having sex with the person he is feeding from, they usually try to find a partner, a consort to spend their lives with.
The vampire community is in tatters after most of the elders have been killed with the fire that destroyed Polidori’s, the night club who was the centre of their community back in Demon Angel and Colin Ames-Beaumont has bought and rebuilt it. Now, the vampires are looking up at him, expecting that he will become their leader.
But Colin wants none of the responsibility – he just wants to carry on with his self-indulgent life. Colin is not a regular vampire: his blood is tainted both by the Sword that belonged to Michael and by the Nosferatu blood that was used for his transformation. This means that he has extra strength, can stand daylight, and has the power to feed from humans without killing them or without being remembered afterwards. Any human he feeds from or has sex with, thinks he was nothing but a fantastic dream. He is one of the most beautiful beings in existence and is extremely vain and egoistic, which is ironic since he has been cursed with not being able to look into a mirror without having visions of Chaos – a terrible realm to which he is an anchor to.
Then he meets Savitri Murray, Hugh’s surrogate sister. Savi is an incredibly smart, curious young woman who has a fantastic memory and is a techie wizard. When a child, she witnessed the murder of her entire family and was saved at the eleventh hour by Hugh when he was still a Guardian. She has built strong psychic shields to protect herself from her memories which kind of separates her mind from her emotions and because of that, she runs – from responsibilities and from deep attachments with her lovers. She suffers a Nosferatu attack at the beginning of the book that will taint her blood and change her life forever.
And these are two individuals that carry the story in Demon Moon.
As Demon Moon begins, we learn that months ago, while they were both sent to Caelum for protection during the final events of Demon Angel, they had a fling that did not end well. Savi, now working for the SI, has trouble trusting Colin, who is after her relentlessly – he is attracted to her to scent and to her personality like never before. So they decide to become friends so that Colin can prove himself trustworthy before they can explore their attraction to each other. But always with the certainty that nothing more than a passing sexual relationship could ever happen between them: Colin , because of his tainted blood can not transform her into a vampire and he can’t feed from one human forever else she would be weak so they have about one month in which to be together before Colin must find another source of blood – which as we know, usually comes with sex. And that is no good.
And that is only the beginning: we have their relationship in the centre stage yes, but this is a big theatre with other characters , demons , nosferati , vampires, plots, and the happenings that surround them in a crescendo till the climax of the book.
I found this instalment to have a completely different feel from Demon Angel with regards to the love story. In that one, we could see from the start that Hugh and Lilith were made for each other, two sides of the same coin, light and darkness, truth and lies and that from the start they were bound to find love in each other.
In Demon Moon , there is an uneasy feeling regarding Colin and Savi , who seem to be so superficial and careless having only passing relationship with other people and who can’t, possibly, be ready for love.
But Meljean Brook’s writing shines once more, as she surprises me by showing that they had more depth than anyone can see – as the story progresses we are shown layer upon layer of these characters, like, excuse me for the awful comparison, peeling an onion , where by showing us what they are trying to protect, we finally reach their core, or their hearts and when we do, the tale turns into a conflicted, deep, sometimes sad, love story. The forces that they have to face, their own tainted blood, their inner nightmares, are almost tragic. At points I feared that the happy ending would not come at all, as I could not see a way out of their predicament.
And as neither could them, their despair grew and I couldn’t help but to feel for their misery and their sadness and I shed a tear or two. It took my breath away, the way their story was resolved, some of the turns the story had in the end were quite courageous – and felt deeply relieved that they did find a way to be together and happy.
In other words: another fantastic instalment in a series that is shaping up to be one of my favourites.
Notable quotes/parts: The last pages. Their despair at the imminent separation and the realisation that they had to, at least try, the madness of feeding from each other because the thought of spending an eternity apart was much worse than death.
Additional Thoughts: I think I mentioned that before but I really dig this thing of bloodlust and sex together. It reminds me of this:
Verdict: Everything is good about the book: the characters, the action sequences and the fight scenes, the universe, the dialogue, the sex, the love story.
Rating: another 10!
Reading next: By Arrangement by Madeline Hunter.
About Us
Mockingjay Blog Tour
Popular Tags
Angry Robot
Apocalypse
ARC
Carrie Ryan
Comedy
Comics
Contemporary
Covers
Dark Fantasy
Dystopia
Fairy Tales
Fantasy
Flash
Graphic Novel
Guest Post
Halloween
Historical
Horror
Kim Harrison
Kresley Cole
Literary Fiction
Loretta Chase
Lost
Melissa Marr
Meljean Brook
Movie Review
Movies
Mystery
Nalini Singh
Neil Gaiman
Paranormal
Paranormal Romance
Patricia Briggs
Richelle Mead
Romance
Sarah Rees Brennan
Science Fiction
Speculative Fiction
Steampunk
Stephen King
TV Shows
Urban Fantasy
Vampire
Young Adult
Zombies
