Black Magic Sanction Review

I was so excited on Tuesday when Black Magic Sanction was finally released. I think Kim Harrison is a very talented writer, and the latest book in her Hollows series doesn't disappoint. In this book, both the demons and the witches are hunting Rachel. Being neither quite a witch nor quite a demon, her unique genetic make-up would allow demons to start repopulating. Demons want to use her, and so-called white witches want to destroy her. And, as always, helping her out of sticky situations are her close band of friends Ivy the vampire, Jenks the Pixie and Pierce the witch, among others. Floating in and out of the story is Trent Kalamack, a billionaire whose history with Rachel goes back to childhood, and who isn't really on Rachel's side but isn't necessarily against her either. And Al! Al! Al! There's lots of Al the demon in this one so I was very happy to explore his teacher/student relationship with Rachel in more detail. Al is such a unique and interesting character so I was glad that he featured prominently in this book. If you like the urban fantasy genre of books, I recommend you pick up the first in this Hollows series, Dead Witch Walking. This is one of the best series out there, in my opinion.

I also managed to read the Demonica series by Larissa Ione. I loved this series, but I'm a huge fan of urban fantasy books. These books center on demon (obviously) brothers who run a hospital hidden under New York somewhere for other demons, vampires, weres, shifters, fallen angels, and other supernatural creatures. It's a fun series if you're into this genre.

Shutter Island Review

I've been lazy about keeping up with my blogging lately. I blame the Olympics which has me completely captivated. I did manage to tear myself away from the Olympics long enough to watch Shutter Island starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley and Max von Sydow. Scorsese makes amazing movies and this was no exception. DiCaprio plays a US Marshall sent to the island to find a patient who escaped and is presumably hiding on the island. What he discovers is so much more and it's a fun ride to take with DiCaprio as he uncovers clues and information. Definitely go see this movie. You will not be disappointed.

A few movies you can skip are The Ugly Truth, Year One, and Knowing. These movies are slow and boring. If they're in your movie rental queue you should consider removing them.

Olympic Ladies' Figure Skating

Ok, WOW! The women's figure skating last night was incredible. The three medalists are mind blowing! Gold medalist Yu Na Kim broke a record with the highest score ever awarded to a female skater. She was over 23 points ahead of the second place girl. And she's from South Korea of all places! She trains in Canada with Brian Orser, but it's incredible that her talent for figure skating was recognized in a country not known for its figure skating and cultivated. Her performance was absolute beauty.

Silver medalist Mao Asada also made history by being the first woman to land three triple axels in one competition, one in her short program and two in her long. Most women can't even do triple axels. Axels are the most difficult jump because they're the only jump that takes off forward, and they're a half a rotation more than every other jump. When she was setting up for her second triple axel last night I was chanting at the TV "do it do it do it do it" trying to will my energy and positive thoughts to her. The rest of her program was great too. {On a side note, this is another example (*cough* Evgeny Plushenko *cough*) as to why having a bigger jump won't guarantee you a gold medal. You need the complete package to get one of those.}

And Joannie...the person everyone on the planet was rooting for. How do you pull off an excellent program like that under those conditions? I knew she was going to do it, though, when she smacked her coach's hands with two hard fives and took two hard fives back right before her skate. The crowd erupted and so did I. Such a wonderful performance. It wasn't a "sympathy" vote to put her on the podium. She earned that medal fair and square. Only a true world-class Olympic athlete could have accomplished what she did.

I also want to take a moment to explain why the American skater didn't belong on the podium. Mirai Nagasu did very, very well but she was generally less polished than the top three. The area where Joannie edged her out was the Program Components which includes choreography, interpretation, etc. Joannie was 8 points higher than Marai in this area, and Marai was only 3 points higher than Joannie in the executed elements. You also have to remember that they factor in the short program as well. Joannie was almost 8 points higher than Marai in the short program score. Watch out in the next Olympics though. Marai Nagasu will definitely be a force to be reckoned with.

I hope you all got a chance to watch this. It was truly an amazing night for figure skating.

Wolfman, The Graduate, Clockwork Orange

Wolfman is a solid representation of the classic wolfman story. The acting is superb with a cast that includes Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Hugo Weaving and Emily Blunt. It was also visually stunning with the setting and the wolfman effects, which weren't overdone. There's nothing particularly amazing about this movie, but it was well made and I recommend it to anyone who likes these kinds of movies.

I finally got around to watching The Graduate. It's one of the few older movies I've watched that actually holds up over time. It's about a guy who doesn't know what he wants to do with his life after he graduates college. He has an affair with a friend of his parents (the Anne Bancroft character), but ends up falling in love with her daughter.

It's soundtrack is famous for its use of several Simon & Garfunkel songs. My only complaint is the use of the same ones over and over. I really didn't need to hear Scarborough Fair four times in a row. S&G have an extensive music catalogue and I wish we got to hear more of it.

A Clockwork Orange is a product of its time. I'm sure it was cutting edge back when it was made, but it doesn't really hold up today. Kubrick tried too hard to make a weird movie.

Reviews for Legion, Temple Grandin, and How to Wash a Cat

I was so disappointed in Legion. I love action/sci-fi movies so I was kind of excited to see this one. I know the reviews weren't good, but I don't listen to movie critics because they don't tend to appreciate the action/sci-fi genre like I do. First the good points: Paul Bettany is nice to look at; and the best scene in the whole movie was when the fry cook ninja chucked a cast iron frying pan at the head of a freaky old lady. Bad points: a whole lotta nothing happened; it was never really explained why this baby of all the babies waiting to be born was the one that could save the world; Dennis Quaid (whose acting gets worse as he ages); and the thing I hated the most was the stupid, moron guy who was supposed to be the protector of the girl and her baby. He was borderline mentally handicapped. Very irritating. I'm sorry to say that I don't recommend this movie at all.

HBO's Temple Grandin biopic was fabulous. I read one of her books on animal behavior several years ago so I was very interested in watching this movie of the story of her life. She was born with Autism, but because of the way her brain processed information she was able to excel at the science animal behavior for which she has a PhD. She single handedly revolutionized the cattle industry. By noticing behavior in cattle that no one else was able to, she redesigned the way in which cattle are treated at ranches and at processing plants. Her design plans are currently used in over half the facilities in the US and she is considered the foremost expert in her field. This is an incredible movie. You should really try to catch it on HBO this month.

My dad picked up a mystery book for me called How to Wash a Cat by Rebecca M. Hale. It's a "cozy" mystery (as opposed to a forensic analysis) about a woman with two cats in San Francisco whose uncle dies. While investigating some mysterious clues her uncle leaves behind, we get involved in the history of San Francisco during the days of the gold rush. It's a fun story that's a little too slow in the middle, but picks up at the end. If you're owned by a cat and you're looking for a fun little read pick this one up.

The Queen Betsy series by Mary Janice Davidson

The Queen Betsy series by Mary Janice Davidson is chick-lit meets the paranormal. These books are laugh-out-loud hilarious and very fun to read. The first book, Undead and Unwed, opens with Betsy as a newly unemployed secretary who gets plowed over by an SUV. She wakes up shortly after in a coffin in a funeral home dressed in a cheap suit and tacky shoes (by her horrible step mother). She soon discovers that she's a vampire, but not an ordinary one because she can walk into a church, is immune to holy water and sunlight, and even a wooden stake in the heart doesn't take her out. This means that she is the queen of the vampires as prophesied in the Book of the Dead, the creepy vampire equivalent of the bible that's bound in human skin and written in blood.

These books follow Betsy, a shallow shoe whore, through her reluctant transformation into the vampire queen. Her unorthodox approach to solving problems both threatens other vampires and endears them to her. I recommend this book for anyone looking for a book on the lighter side of urban fantasy.