Hex Appeal : Short Story Anthology

     I usually only read short story collections if they contain a story from a an author I already like. This one happened to contain several of my favorites.
     Since all collections have an underlining theme, this one has stories that include lovely and sometimes, dangerous women in them. Stories are all fantasy themed and include vampires, big foot, a sex droid from the future, magicians who wield real magic, witches, and even men who are brought back from the dead, and  even a trip to Hell. These tales do contain a bit of romance at times, but are much more.
     Contains authors such as Jim Butcher, Carrie Vaughn, Simon R. Green, and many others.
     I enjoyed most of these stories, two really weren't my favorite, Cherry Kisses and I think it was titled There will be Demons, were not really my cup of tea, but the rest of the tales were interesting and a good read. This is one of the better collections I have read. If your looking for a break from full novels, this wouldn't be a bad choice.

Cold Days by Jim Butcher

     I first discovered The Dresden Files through the short lived Sci-Fi channel series. I wanted something to read and remembered the series was based on a book series. So I checked out Storm Front and fell in love with Harry Dresden.
     This is one of those series that needs to be read in order. The first book is Storm Front.
        The last book, Ghost Story, though it was an interesting, at times, was not my favorite read of the series. I was not disappointed in Cold Days. I loved the twist and turns in this story. This installment was the Harry Dresden I love. A typical normal, bad day for Harry, that as it continues always seem to get worse, but no matter how bad it seems, Harry, always seems to persevere, and live to fight another day, but not without making his life all the more messy and complicated. This story grabs you and especially toward the end is one of those stories that is hard to put down. I can't wait to see what trouble is in store for Harry next.

Les Miserables - film

     I have never seen the stage musical or read the book, that this is based on. I have seen one version of a non-musical film with Liam Neesom in it, which I loved.
     I'll admit I'm not an all go out and see  musical person, but I can enjoy the occasional musical. I loved Phantom of the Opera.
     This is one of those few films that I see the trailer, and it's not a part of a series of films I'm into, and I think, I really want to see this film.
     I wasn't disappointed. Technically, this is an operetta, because song is 99% of the dialogue, with the occasional spoken word. Still even with the singing, you get lost into the story. The casting was well done. Hugh Jackman, was an excellent choice for Jean Valjean, and I really hope he gets the Oscar for the role. Russell Crowe was a great cast for Javert. Worth seeing, even if you aren't really into musicals.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

     I was shocked when I found out this was going to be in three installments. The book is 297 pages in hardback and 320 in paperback. Not a huge book for a novel, though not a tiny one either. The Lord of the Rings, is three books, so one film per book makes sense.
     OK, so about a hundred pages a film. I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and had read the books. It has been a while since I have read The Hobbit, and I recommend reading the book if you haven't. The first film of The Hobbit, was well done. Though about three hours, it didn't feel like it. Like the Lord of the Rings, films, it has been well adapted to the big screen. A bit of foreshadowing, is used, if you are familiar with the Hobbit tale, and even a scene that foreshadows, the Lord of the Rings, that one is a bit more subtle than the first foreshadow at the beginning of the film. The story flows on the big screen well, and is an enjoyable adventure for anyone. An excellent adaptation of a book.
     This film was a great choice to put in 3-D and is worth seeing in I-Max and paying the extra for the D-Box seats, the seats that vibrate and move with the film action.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

     For a book that got at least one major award, and a lot of accolades, I expected a much better read. Though this book was not a bad read, it is not one of my favorite or thought provoking reads, it is still worth checking out.

     I will give credit to the author for his innovated choice of narrator, Death. But here is where I have problems. For one, Death does not mind spoilers, I do. Though in this book, the spoilers did not really destroy the story, but really, who wants to know how something ends, before it ends.

     Another issue was that unlike a journal or diary, this story jumps around past, present, and future, hence, the spoiler parts. It also takes the reader out of the story, just a tad bit. I hate that.

     Thirdly, I realize the Death perspective and his personal “jobs” had a purpose of showing the atrocities of war and how cruel and inhuman the Nazi’s were, but it again, takes the reader outside of the story, which irks me just a little bit.

     This story probably would have been better if it was shorter. It is over five hundred pages. It took me over one hundred pages to start getting into the story, and about half way through it started to get a whole lot better.

     Was nice to have a story about World War Two, that was from the German side, that was not based on real people, such as Schindler’s List. 

Lincoln

     I will admit I watch a lot of action, thriller, adventure type films but it is a nice escape for me to see a good drama, and if it's historical fiction, all the better.
     This film follows the last days of Lincoln's life and the end of the Civil War. This film is based part on a book. The acting was well done. Enlightening. One never really thinks of the fine line of political actions. It did feel a tad bit too long, but well worth seeing. What I really liked about this film was how human Lincoln was, and how humor was inserted, here and there, to relieve some of the tension of the film. I've heard this is getting Oscar buzz, and after seeing it, I understand why. A well done piece of thematic work.

Gunmetal Magic by Ilona Andrews

     This is a story based on a character that appears in The Kate Daniels series. If you haven't read this series, you can read this book without getting lost, though being a reader of the series, makes the story richer because of the already known knowledge of characters history. The first book in The Kate Daniels series is Magic Bites.
     This book follows Andrea Nash, Kate Daniels best friend and a shape shifter, who's past has had her pretending to be human, as much as she could. Andrea used to be a Knight of the Order, then when she was discovered to be a shape shifter, she lost the life that kept her sane. Now she works with Kate Daniels and her investigations firm Cutting Edge.
     A murder of shape shifters pulls Andrea into Pack business, when she is asked to help investigate. The case forces her to deal with her ex-boyfriend Raphael. That encounter begins a change in Andrea and she begins to become the complete woman she should be, part human and part Hyena. Excepting the price she would have to pay, becoming a member of the pack.
     Throw in a God, trying to gain his full power back. A bit of romance. Magic, monsters, pack politics, and the addition of a novella, that follows Kate's adventure during the time of Andrea's investigation. I loved having a story that dealt more into Andrea's world. Not disappointing in the least. A perfect blended story, that bites you and doesn't let go, till the end.