Tuesday, November 24, 2009

NEW MOON REVIEW By Veronica Blake

New Moon, the second movie in the hugely popular Twilight Saga, had to fulfill great expectations.  The first movie, Twilight, was immensely successful, but with a different director, Chris Wietz, for the second installment, there has been a lot of speculation about the outcome of this new movie. 





Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan opens the movie with a heart-wrenching scene as she dreams that she is introducing her vampire boyfriend, Edward Cullen, to her grandmother.  But, she is looking into a mirror and the woman is not her grandmother; she is looking at herself as an old woman.  Standing at her side, Edward is still young and vibrant.  When she wakes up, it is the day Bella has been dreading – her eighteenth birthday – she is now older than Edward, who will be forever seventeen. After a tragic mishap at her birthday party, Edward decides that he must leave to keep Bella safe.  The grief that Bella suffers after losing Edward is agonizing to watch and the passing of time is dramatically represented by the changing seasons outside of Bella’s bedroom window as she sits unmoving in a chair.  Although, it is understandable that she would have terrible nightmares because of her deep depression, her hoarse-sounding screams in these scenes are just annoying.


The realization that she can see images of Edward or hear his voice whenever she does something dangerous sends Bella on a series of reckless escapades in her quest to keep his memory alive.  One scene has her hopping on the back of a stranger’s motorcycle, which seems senseless and completely out of place.  Yet, another scene where she cliff dives in an attempt to glimpse his illusion again, you are immersed in Bella’s desperate quest so deeply that you feel like you are drowning, too.



There is plenty of eye candy in the form of the half-dressed ‘wolf pack’ and especially in the nicely developed muscles of seventeen year old Taylor Lautner, who plays sixteen year old Jacob Black, Bella’s childhood friend from the local Quileute Reservation. Jacob’s hopeless devotion to Bella and his unwanted werewolf affliction will definitely tug relentlessly at your heart-strings. The transformation of the pack from human form to wolf form is spectacular and action scenes with the wolves are exciting and fast-paced.  A scene where Jacob and Paul are fighting one another in their wolf forms will have you biting your nails!


Robert Pattison is perfect once again as the tortured love-sick hero. His expressions of pain speak a thousand words in every glance as he portrays 109 year old vampire, Edward Cullen.  For Edward fanatics like myself, his anguish over leaving Bella was pure torture and seeing him through most of the movie as only mist-like images was done well enough that I could endure his absence.   One scene, however, showing Alice – Edward’s vampire sister – having a vision of the future where Bella and Edward are running through the forest dressed like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and John Travolta from Saturday Night Fever was too far-fetched for even a hard-core fan like myself.

If you have not read the books, parts of New Moon will be hard to follow.  I am an avid reader of the series, so I thoroughly know the plot, but seeing the action on the big screen is an added bonus.  As described in the book, but not mentioned in the movie, vampires have skin that is as hard and smooth as marble.  The final fight scene in Italy with the Volturi - the terrifying vampire royalty – shows Edward being thrown against the hard marble floor, causing his cheek to develop cracks just like the floor he has crashed against...a stunning and unexpected special effect that left me breathless.


Being an ‘older’ woman, I do not fit into the target audience for the Twilight books or the movies.  Stephanie Meyer wrote the books for teens, yet, the overpowering love story spans all ages. It has reminded me, and probably other mature women like me, of long forgotten dreams that we all had as young girls about love – true love, the kind that is so powerful that it will last for eternity – a love that you would die for if necessary.  The Twilight Saga is a fantasy...it is a romantic escape interlaced with unspeakable dangers and ancient legends, and we love it!


Review by author Veronica Blake author of BLACK HORSE.
Was there any warrior more handsome, more virile than the powerful young war chief bathing naked in the river? Meadow was certain she'd never forget the sight of his lean hips, his sinewed thighs and bronzed chest. He was all that a Sioux maiden could want in a mate. But though she'd been raised in the village, Meadow was not really one of the People. Her parents had been white, and her past would bring unexpected disaster upon her band of Oglala.

She was his to love, her flaxen hair shining like gold on the furs as he stroked her sweet body. But when she was ripped from his arms after a single night as his wife, Black Horse swore he would rescue her from the pony soldiers. Even if he lost his own freedom, his life, he would gaze one more time into the beautiful jade green eyes of the woman who possessed his soul.
Find out more or buy the book from AMAZON.COM  
Black Horse (Leisure Historical Romance)

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Monday, November 23, 2009

Twilight Movie Review by Terry Kate


Alright I confess I might be having a little bit of an obsession with this film.  I truly must be in the mood for teen angst.  I mean really!  Is this a great film - shite no.  I went into watching it with low expectations even though I enjoy the actors Kristen Stewart (Bella) and and the very handsome Robert Pattinson (Edward).   So Enjoyment 5/5 Car Horns, film wise, I will be generous and give it 3/5 Car Horns.
 
Okay, sometimes the cheese factor is high, the glowing skin looked goofy.  Edwards whole I am a killer/predator speech, well rivals velveta.  So why do I love it?  I have read the first book and all I could think was that Bella was annoying in her low self esteem and well she has some whine to go with her cheese in the books.


In the movie her moments of self doubt play as cute and funny.  The make out scene is hot - in the book, "I wanted him to kiss me forever", like we have never read that line before - Not an exact quote.   Our stars have great chemistry though Robert Pattinson just makes puppy love very believable, I thought so with Cho in his role as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter, boy gets two iconic literary roles. 

I found family moments between the Cullens added to the story such as when they cook for Bella and he lets them know she already ate.  Their thunder storm baseball game, and friendly banter is a nice touch.  Their world, which Bella is entering just happens to be entirely separate from that of the other students and really, who would choose to be in high school over and over and over?


Soundtrack is a great enhancer to the movie and my fave song is actually performed by our star Rob Pattinson.  Another song in the film is actually sung by Rob's sister also.  Hot and talented, sigh.  I might have to clear my schedule and run to the movies to see New Moon tomorrow.  I have a soft spot for this boy, though I hear he is only in the film for the first 15 min or so.  I am not sure if the watching her sleep is sweet or stalker-ish.  Either way they did a great job with Bella's hair color, divine and I want. 
If you want teen love and obsession look no further.   It is all right her in the Twilight Movie.
Listing to Backseat Movie Talks radio show on the subject with author A.E. Rought here...    

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Wednesday, November 11, 2009

HEX IN HIGH HEELS BY Linda Wisdom









Fourth in the popular, light paranormal romance series by an author whose books have sold 13 million copies. In this sexy, funny paranormal romance by bestselling author Linda Wisdom, it's all beautiful witch Blair Fitzpatrick can do to keep a lid on her talent for revenge spells, but things are about to get a lot more complicated...
Blair loves running her vintage shop and hanging out with witchy friends Stasi and Jazz. She's forever had a crush on hunky carpenter Jake Harrison, whose Were nature (he's a Border collie) makes him loyal, lovable, and fierce when need be. Just as sparks are beginning to fly, Blair is served with a big surprise when Jake's mother shows up along with his pack leader, who threatens to make Jake heel! When the alpha does the unthinkable, Blair is pushed over the edge. No one messes with her boyfriend-to-be, even if he does shed on the furniture!

Description taken from: Borders.com  Find out more about Linda Wisdom at her site http://www.lindawisdom.com


Review By Doni Miller
ritbsdoni@gmail.com

Linda Wisdom’s Hex in High Heels is a non-stop treat. From the beginning of the book to the back cover, it is a delight to read. The story flows well. The writing makes for easy reading, but not simplistic. I truly enjoy the charming small town with all of its interesting inhabitants, even Mayor Floyd and his Wife Agnes.

Each character, both good and bad, is vibrant and alive. I feel as I could put myself in the story, and watch the goings on in the town. I just can’t pick a favorite character: Stasi the Witch, Trev the Wizard, Blair the Witch, Jake the Were-Border Collie (first one of those that I‘ve seen), Jazz the Witch, Horace the obnoxious and smart mouthed Gargoyle, or Felix the talking Kit-Kat Clock. Oh, and I can’t forget, Fluff and Puff. I so want bunny slippers! I don’t like Vera the Werewolf who tries to get Blair to do a revenge spell on her son. It’s just not right to hurt your children. The wide range of characters is bound to tickle something in every reader’s fancy.

There is sex and sexual tension, but it is not overdone and not overly graphic. But it still descriptive enough to hold the reader’s interest. There is intense passion and connection between Jake and Blair. The magick between them really causes sparks to fly.

One of my favorite scenes in the story, aside from the one at the lake (which I cannot describe without spoiling), is when the elves pulled up in the puke colored RV in front of Blair’s shop. The elves are truly obnoxious and crude. Blair teaches them a lesson in manners, and Agnes finishes the job, but not until later in the story.


All in all, Linda Wisdom’s Hex series, and this story specifically, are awesome reads. She is an author that regardless of the genre, I would recommend. The next book cannot get here soon enough.


Linda Wisdom Author 5 of 5 stars
Hex in High Heels 5 of 5 stars

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Tuesday, November 10, 2009

The Horn of Plenty - By Angel Leigh McCoy

The Horn of Plenty
By Angel Leigh McCoy


Paranormal romance has evolved (as have its readers) over the decades. When I was a girl, growing up in Midwestern cornfields, I had my view of romance sculpted by the gothic romance novels I devoured like candy. I’d pick up any book that had a woman standing against a stormy background of castle, full moon, and ominous shadows.



I’ve heard the older genre called gothic romance, gothic horror, and Gothick. The central elements of the stories were spookiness, mystery, and romance—a volatile combination. These novels are the ancestors of what we today call supernatural or paranormal romance. They invariably feature a brave and intelligent young woman endangered by a murderer or supernatural being such as a ghost.


I am grateful for the many hours of pleasure I took from them, and the inspiration they gave me to be a strong, willful woman who loves with all her heart.


I want to share three of my favorite twentieth-century novelists with you, so you too can go back and read some of the classics that broke the trail for writers like Charlaine Harris, Sherilyn Kenyon, Laurell K. Hamilton, and many others.


  • Eleanor Hibbert published her first novel in 1941 under the name Eleanor Buford. Over the years, she used many pseudonyms you might recognize: Victoria Holt, Anne Percival, Jean Plaidy, Elbur Ford, Kathleen Kellow, and Ellalice Tate. She published her last novel in 1995. Over the course of her writing career, she sold more than 100 million copies.

  • Mary Stewart wrote her first novel in 1955 and continued to write for the next forty-two years. I have read most of her books, and they rank among my personal favorites.

  • Barbara Mertz, also known as Elizabeth Peters and Barbara Michaels, published her first novel in 1966. She is still writing today, at the age of 82. Barbara wrote the hugely popular Amelia Peabody series, which to this day, has 18 volumes. Her other famous serial characters include Vicky Bliss and Jacqueline Kirby.


Next time you’re waiting for your favorite author to put out his/her next book, pull an old gem from the cornucopia provided by these novelists. Reading them is like going home for Thanksgiving; it’s an experience full of nostaligia, secrets, drama, and love.



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Angel Leigh McCoy, writer, editor, game designer
http://www.angelleigh.com


Wily speculative fiction downloads in audio and text formats, for grown-ups: http://www.wilywriters.com

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