July 30, 2013
Night Prince 2: Twice Tempted
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Knew these two couldn't stay apart, and not just from having seen them together in Night Huntress. Maximus and Shrapnel make the disappointing pair for the book. Also rather annoyed with Leila's dad, especially with how her sister has handled everything. Vlad really opens up a lot when it comes to his relationship with Leila, which is the only thing that saves them initially beyond their obvious draw to each other. Knew she'd be turned at some point, though didn't expect it to happen exactly like that. Once again, this book leaves the series at a bit of a cliff hanger, where you know there's a lot more to come but can't reach it yet. The next book needs to be out now, but there isn't even an expected publication date listed. Need the rest of this story soon!
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Night Prince 1: Once Burned
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
For some reason, I thought I had already read this when I went through the Night Huntress originally. The introduction didn't help any as Leila sounded extremely familiar, until I realized I'd already seen her in the other series. After that, things started falling into place and I was able to enjoy it for what it was. There is one very brief moment when Bones and Cat come to visit that you see a glimpse of the Vlad he is in the other series being Cat's friend and ally. Otherwise, he is very much Dracula, despite his aversion to the name.
Leila really could have, and should have been, explored a bit more deeply. For all that she is a very strong and self aware feminine character, she obviously has a lot of history and complications that really get ghosted over. Maybe not so much as thousands of years background that the older vampires come with, but we still seem to get more of their stories than hers. This is an odd contrast with the fact that she and Vlad are the main characters for the series.
That being said, the ending is a bit of a twist. These two are so great together, and yet at the same time she had all her reasons lined up just right for walking away. Obviously something is in the works since Vlad let her go unpunished again. Now for round two!
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July 27, 2013
Anita Blake Vampire Hunter 22: Affliction
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I will admit that I'm starting to like these books more again as they slowly seem to turn away from the focus on the mass orgy scenes and back to the actual crime scenes. I do still love the original pair Anita/Jean-Claude, and I never would have seen her accepting a proposal had that question been staged anywhere in the earlier books. Guess The Executioner really is mellowing.
The dynamics with Micah's family are interesting. Every book seems to take them further away from home though for new scenery and new people, though most of them were of the human variety this time around being cops. Sometimes I miss the home town action with the tough as nails slayer and Jean-Claude having to fight for every inch he gets with her.
Also still really like Edward, though I was surprised how often he crossed personas in this book. Usually he's more definitely divided between Ted/Ed except when he's alone with Anita, and maybe her men. The line slipped a lot more in front of other cops and executioners this time around.
Some parts, like with Micah's family and details with Asher, were glossed over far to quickly without being fleshed out. Other parts, like running through the forest on a case and stopping for a make-out session while waiting for the cops to catch up, were far too stretched out and detailed. Needs to get a little more balance back to be the devouring stories I remember from the originals, but it's getting closer to what I think of as "the good stuff." Still, this was a surprisingly quick read for me, especially given sometimes books with literally take me months now that baby girl is my focus. Nice to know a favorite series can still pull it out of me.
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July 22, 2013
Jack the Giant Slayer
Jack the Giant Slayer (2013)
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
This is a different take on the tale of Jack and the Beanstalk. This time it isn't just one giant at the top of the beanstalk that has to be sweet talked. It's a horde of hungry and angry giants that are ready to go on a rampage. Add in a magical crown to control the blood thirsty giants and a princess/pauper love triangle to round off a new story. Interesting how Jack always ends up with just the right amount of luck to survive each new encounter, even when the king's "best men" fall to their deaths (even if that is due to some sabotage). Maybe it's because the original is so well known or because everything is so dang lucky while also being somewhat predictable, the story really is difficult to stay completely interested in. Not as engaging as I would have hoped, though the CGI is excellent.
Whodunnit?
Whodunnit? (2013)
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
This is an interesting tale as you know one of the "guests" is the mastermind behind the "deaths" and they are all working towards finding the culprit. The deaths are staged, though sometimes it's hard to remember that until you see the cut scenes during the end credits that sometimes involve the "corpse" coming back to life and talking about their death experience. Overall very low key and feels somewhat anticlimactic.
July 15, 2013
I Am a Bunny
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is another old board book that used to belong to me and is now in my daughter's library. A short and sweet story of a bunny going through the different seasons, showing activities and observations as the year goes by. Not as captivating to Mercy as other animal stories that she has, but still an old favorite. The large pages make it easier for her to handle when she wants to turn the pages herself. Hopefully the large print will mean she wants to read it more as she learns herself down the road.
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Baby Animals
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was originally one of my books as a child, and now I read it to my daughter. Our copy is a larger print board book edition. The book handles well for our daughter who just turned one, and I don't have to worry about her tearing the pages. The story is very slow paced as each page teaches something about a new baby animal and what sound it makes. It makes a point at the end of the book to state that all animals should be handled gently. Seeing as we have 3 cats and make regular trips to my friend's barn, this is a lesson that I cannot endorse enough. All animals should be treated with care! It's an extra bonus that we have a fun way to teach our daughter this that she enjoys.
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July 14, 2013
DC Extended Universe 1: Man of Steel
DCEU 1: Man of Steel (2013)
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed this re-launch. The movie starts out with a new twist on Superman's beginning and actually starts with his birth on Krypton. Louise isn't the clueless and helpless damsel in distress when it comes to Superman. Rather, she digs up Clark's identity before he himself is sure of who he'll be to the public, helping cement his place as one of the "good guys" when Zod shows up and the fists start flying. They may have gone a little overboard with the Kryptonian fights, but did a really good job of making it more involved than the previous attempts while clearly showing Clark's struggle as he tries to help the soldiers and determine exactly what he's going to stand for, proving through actions far more than words that he's there for the right reasons. Also must admit that the new uniform is big step up from the original, though it does still sport the traditional colors and the cape may be a little more extravagant than necessary. Guess it just adds to the drama with those silhouette shots that have the cape billowing behind him.
The Fast & the Furious 6
The Fast & the Furious 6 (2013)
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Part of me is still surprised that they manage to keep coming up with something new for this series, while part of me thinks it got repetitive awhile ago, and another part is just enjoying the show. High adrenaline, lots of speed, and a new challenge with a lot of car damage. Letty's amnesia is a bit of a surprise, though can't help but be both glad and sad with the ending. Looks like they're already revving up for number 7 of the series. The preview reminded us of Tokyo Drift, so it will be interesting to see if we keep the same core cast now that the team is back home again, or if they bring in new characters as they did with Tokyo Drift. Guess we'll have to wait and see.
Down These Strange Streets
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
I have had a really hard time digging into this book, as evident by both the rating and the amount of time it took me to read it. Sure, books are taking me longer to finish as more of my time is spent either working or with my daughter than reading, but May to July? Nearly 3 months for one book. Ouch.
Originally picked this up because it had shorts from authors that I normally read. Sadly, they mostly seemed to be filler that you could already more or less guess from the main series and didn't fill any real gap or need. The rest of the stories were dry and failed to draw me in, lending to the extended reading time. Maybe I would have been more interested in them if I knew more of the stories or characters aside from the brief snippets given at the start of each one. Either way, this book was overall a rather large disappointment that I finished more out of sheer determination than a desire to find out what happened next.
The only saving grace that earns the second star is Patricia Brigg's snippet from the Mercy Thompson series. I adore that series and never seem to get enough of it. This was the only part of the book that I didn't take a break during or have to trudge through to finish. Wish I could say that about more of the book.
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Clifford's Noisy Day
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is a very simple and basic book that goes through a day in Clifford's life as a small puppy. Eating, sleeping and going on walks are just some of the descriptions you'll find for his "noisy day" as each activity has an accompanying sound. Mercy does enjoy the few times she's watched Clifford The Big Red Dog on PBS, so it's little surprise she was a giddy little girl when her pediatrician gave her this book at her last wellness check. Now that's a nice surprise for a doctor's visit!
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Opposites
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Boynton's board books are family favorites that are a lot of fun and often feature cute rhymes or stories to capture the child's attention. This specific one features differences between the characters or what they have (big/small, tall/short, high/low, etc). Aptly names "opposites" as each page is a different set of opposites pictured, this is a cute book for both learning and fun while still being safe for young children being a board book instead of just easily tearing paper.
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Moo, Baa, La La La!
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Another fun children's book. This one features the traditional cute art that is common in Boynton's books, along with the accompanying sounds of each individual animal. Being animal people ourselves and already teaching Mercy about many different ones (our cats along with our friend's dogs, horses and chickens mostly), this is a fun book that she always ends up giggling with and grabbing for. Hopefully she'll continue to enjoy this one as she grows and learns to read on her own.
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July 3, 2013
Kingdom Hearts Re:coded
Kingdom Hearts Re:coded (Nintendo DS)
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
After mostly playing touch screen games on my DS lately (Professor Layton and Phoenix Wright series), it was a strange adjustment to go to using the game console buttons for this one. Despite that hiccup that initially drove me a little batty during combat, I am finding myself enjoying the game. It can be a little frustrating at times, but the cameo appearances of different Disney characters makes it a little more fun and adds a bit of sense to some of the "zones" that would otherwise be missing in game play.
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