District 9 movie and Dark Swan book series

I went to see District 9 this weekend and loved it! It's an intelligent and fresh take on what would happen if aliens came to earth. I like that it happens in Johannesburg, South Africa (very symbolic, btw) as opposed to some typical US city. I also liked that they used all unknown actors, which played well with the documentary-style of storytelling. The only thing I didn't like is that almost all of it was filmed on hand-held cameras making for a lot of jittery shots. My eyes were getting sore after awhile so I kept looking down to focus on my stable and unmoving knee for a few moments. Excellent movie. I highly recommend it.

I've also read the Dark Swan book series by Richelle Mead which so far includes Storm Born and Thorn Queen. I just read these two books to kill a couple days until the new Chelsea Cain book comes out, but I ended up enjoying reading these two books. They're fun and easy to read urban fantasy books. Pick these up if you're looking for an easy way to kill some time. {Thorn Queen is currently available as a free download on the Kindle.}

Book Reviews: The Hollows Series and the Fever series

I was recently laid up after having an operation on my foot so I had a lot of time to make a dent in my TBR pile. The first series I read was the urban fantasy Hollows series by Kim Harrison which includes Dead Witch Walking; The Good, The Bad and the Undead; Every Which Way But Dead; A Fistful of Charms; For a Few Demons More; The Outlaw Demon Wails; and White Witch, Black Curse. I absolutely LOVED this series. The main character, Rachel Morgan, is a witch with a messed up and complicated life, and although life keeps throwing curveballs at her she still manages to fight the good fight.

There are so many fun and interesting characters, my favorite of which is a pixie named Jenks who is one of Rachel's business partners. He may only be four inches tall but his personality is larger than life. My favorite part of these books are the Tink curses he spews out, such as Tink's titties! Tink's tampons! Tink's diaphram! And, of course, Tink's a Disney whore! Baa-haa-haa!

All these books were so much fun to read. I recommend them to everyone.

The other book series I read was the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning which includes Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever, and Dreamfever. The main character, MacKayla Lane, is unwittingly lured into an epic fight between humans and faes for the planet earth. The series is just ok. The only thing that keeps it really intersting is the character Jerhico Z. Barrons. We're still not sure who or what he is. He's dark, powerful, mysterious, dangerous, and he keeps Mac alive. I wouldn't necessarily recommend these books unless this is your genre of choice.

Julie & Julia

I went to see Julie & Julia before I get laid up with my foot surgery. I didn't think it would be a good movie because it didn't appear to have any plot. However, Meryl Streep comes through once again with her larger than life portrayal of Julia Child. You can't help but love her, annoying voice and all. And I love Stanley Tucci who played Julia's husband (but I like him in anything he does). Amy Adams, who portrayed the woman who cooked her way through Julia Child's cookbook in year, was good as well. It's a good movie if you're looking for something to see.

On a side note, I would like to remind people who sit in the seats at the ends of the rows in movie theaters that once the movie is over, you need to stand up and exit the theater. If you didn't get hint when the movie ended and the credits started rolling, the other cue is when those of us who sit in the middle of the rows stand up and start moving toward the aisles (re: you). We don't want to be blocked in until you feel like getting your lazy keester out of the (uncomfortable) chair.

Book Review: Night Huntress Series

I just read my way through the Night Huntress series by Jeaniene Frost, which includes Halfway to the Grave, One Foot in the Grave, At Grave's End, and the recently released Destined for an Early Grave. What a fun read! It follows our heroine, Cat, through her adventures of finding and killing bad vampires while inadvertently getting involved with the good vampires.

I like that Cat is a tough, take-charge chick who doesn't need a guy to save her that Bones, the good vampire who finds her, let's her be that chick and loves her for it. There's also a lot of humor and action in these books. If you're looking for something fun to read, check these out.