The Island

tags: thriller

⭐

 

From GoodReads

After moving from a small country town to Seattle, Heather Baxter marries Tom, a widowed doctor with a young son and teenage daughter. A working vacation overseas seems like the perfect way to bring the new family together, but once they’re deep in the Australian outback, the jet-lagged and exhausted kids are so over their new mom.

When they discover remote Dutch Island, off-limits to outside visitors, the family talks their way onto the ferry, taking a chance on an adventure far from the reach of iPhones and Instagram.

But as soon as they set foot on the island, which is run by a tightly knit clan of locals, everything feels wrong. Then a shocking accident propels the Baxters from an unsettling situation into an absolute nightmare. When Heather and the kids are separated from Tom, they are forced to escape alone, seconds ahead of their pursuers.

Now it’s up to Heather to save herself and the kids, even though they don’t trust her, the harsh bushland is filled with danger, and the locals want her dead.

Heather has been underestimated her entire life, but she knows that only she can bring her family home again and become the mother the children desperately need, even if it means doing the unthinkable to keep them all alive.

Ugh! A 24 year-old Katniss wannabe/female Rambo. Ridiculous. Written for teenagers with short attention span and for TV movie (currently being filmed for HULU). Where's the banjo?!!

Heather and the 2 children, ages 12 and 14, have the same voice and personality. The author contrives writing the husband Tom as a happy go lucky character with lame dad jokes but fails, IMHO. Similar to someone speaking with the stress on the wrong syllable.

Avoid!

Two Nights In Lisbon

tags: mystery

⭐

From GoodReads

Ariel Pryce wakes up in Lisbon, alone. Her husband is gone—no warning, no note, not answering his phone.

Something is wrong. She starts with hotel security, then the police, then the American embassy, at each confronting questions she can’t fully answer: What exactly is John doing in Lisbon? Why would he drag her along on his business trip? Who would want to harm him? And why does Ariel know so little about her new—much younger—husband?

The clock is ticking. Ariel is increasingly frustrated and desperate, running out of time, and the one person in the world who can help is the one person she least wants to ask.

Not the best writing style, a mediocre and boring mystery, the 2 days felt like 20 years. I guessed early on, about a third through, what is happening and the supposed to be "twist". It isn't that hard to guess if you are paying attention and are a mystery novel junkie. The author is not very subtle by constantly reminding the readers lest they forget that Ariel Pryce used to be an actress. The author also keeps reiterating how beautiful Ariel is and how many times she has been sexually assaulted even as a child up to adulthood and as a married woman. Add a corrupt oversexed politician to the mix and you have a clichéd ho-hum MeToo story.😒

The author, Chris Pavone, is terribly offensive for portraying the Portuguese police as backward people living in the stone age. Ariel hands the policeman a USB memory stick and he asks what is it as though he has never seen one in his entire life. The same Portuguese policeman is written as a caricature with food grease on his necktie and he piles more food on it each time he eats. This scenario may be funny if the book is a slapstick comedy but it is not. It's supposed to be a serious MeToo story. 1 star rating for you!

Skip it.

Quicksilver

tags: fantasy, horror, mystery, sci-fi, supernatural

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From GoodReads

Quinn Quicksilver was born a mystery―abandoned at three days old on a desert highway in Arizona. Raised in an orphanage, never knowing his parents, Quinn had a happy if unexceptional life. Until the day of “strange magnetism.” It compelled him to drive out to the middle of nowhere. It helped him find a coin worth a lot of money. And it practically saved his life when two government agents showed up in the diner in pursuit of him. Now Quinn is on the run from those agents and who knows what else, fleeing for his life.

During a shoot-out at a forlorn dude ranch, he finally meets his destined companions: Bridget Rainking, a beauty as gifted in foresight as she is with firearms, and her grandpa Sparky, a romance novelist with an unusual past. Bridget knows what it’s like to be Quinn. She’s hunted, too. The only way to stay alive is to keep moving.

Barreling through the Sonoran Desert, the formidable trio is impelled by that same inexplicable magnetism toward the inevitable. With every deeply disturbing mile, something sinister is in the rearview―an enemy that is more than a match for Quinn. Even as he discovers within himself resources that are every bit as scary.

Another 5 star sci-fi mystery thriller with a touch of Koontz' political slant which is slightly right leaning so if you are a screaming leftist fascist democrat, you might not like the novel.

Quinn and Bridget see alien-like monsters the trio encounter and eliminate whom they dub "Screamers". The "Screamers" don't have facial features like eyes and nose. They have a large toothless maw that looks like Edvard Munch's The Scream. Reminds me so much of this screaming woman upon learning Ultra MAGA King President Trump won the 2016 presidential elections. Dean Koontz probably was thinking of this screamer when he started writing the novel.😁😁😁

The trio's first priority is getting rid of a false prophet whose victims are abducted and made into slaves to work for his organization's rich elite members. Think NXIVM, an alleged sex cult covered up as a self-help group. The "Screamers" they further encounter will have to wait after the rescue of the victims.

This is interesting:

The 3 men who found 3 day old baby Quinn Quicksilver in the middle of a highway have similar names to the Three Kings or magi who visited the newborn baby Jesus Christ - Kaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar. After finishing reading the book, I was wondering what the significance could be and if this would be a series just like Odd Thomas. Quinn, Bridget, and grandpa Sparky went to see Kaspar only; the other 2 did not appear again in the book.

My Liberation Notes's Mr. Gu

Move over Gong Yoo, Lee Min-Ho, Park Bo-Gum...there's a new heartthrob in KDramaland, Son Suk-Ku who plays the mysterious tight-lipped stranger in Netflix drama My Liberation Notes. Mr. Gu is working as a carpenter hired by the father of 3 adult siblings still living in their parents' house outside of Seoul.

My Liberation Notes synopsis from AsianWiki

My Liberation Notes" tells a story of three siblings and a stranger.

Yeom Chang-Hee is the middle child of the three siblings. He wants to escape from his family's home in Sanpo Village, but he doesn't have a dream and just spends his life meaninglessly. He is looked down upon by his family members.

Yeom Mi-Jeong is the youngest child of the three siblings. She would like to be liberated from her boring life, but she is introverted and timid. She is lonely and feels unfulfilled in her life.

Yeom Gi-Jeong is the oldest child of the three siblings. She has a hot temper. She wastes a lot of time commuting to her job in Seoul from Sanpo Village. Her life is filled with complaints and she wants to find love.

Mr. Gu is a mysterious man, who suddenly appears in Sanpo Village. He is always drunk. One day, Yeom Mi-Jeong approaches him.

Son Suk-Ku and his character Mr. Gu are currently the most popular and beloved by fans worldwide. The videos above are made by fans of Mr. Gu and Mi-Jeong from the series.

The first 6 episodes, Mr. Gu doesn't talk much nor socialize with his neighbors, and he drinks 2 bottles of soju every night. One day, the youngest daughter Mi-Jeong, makes an unusual proposition which he accepts by doing something unexpected - a fantastic long jump exactly like a gold medalist Olympian to retrieve a hat for Mi-Jeong. His old life is being revealed slowly which may or may not be bad. But the audience probably won't mind if he turns out to be a gangster.

Son Suk-Ku is not the most handsome Korean actor nor is he very tall, but on screen he has that oomph that viewers noticed him when he appeared briefly in Episode 6 of Jirisan.

He is also on Netflix Korean military drama series, D.P., as Lt. Im Ji-Seob

The Marlow Murder Club

tags: mystery 

⭐⭐

From GoodReads

To solve an impossible murder, you need an impossible hero…

Judith Potts is seventy-seven years old and blissfully happy. She lives on her own in a faded mansion just outside Marlow, there’s no man in her life to tell her what to do or how much whisky to drink, and to keep herself busy she sets crosswords for The Times newspaper.

One evening, while out swimming in the Thames, Judith witnesses a brutal murder. The local police don’t believe her story, so she decides to investigate for herself, and is soon joined in her quest by Suzie, a salt-of-the-earth dog-walker, and Becks, the prim and proper wife of the local Vicar. Together, they are the Marlow Murder Club.

When another body turns up, they realise they have a real-life serial killer on their hands. And the puzzle they set out to solve has become a trap from which they might never escape.

The novel is a new cozy murder mystery series set in England with 3 female amateur sleuths solving murders. It is a less entertaining parroting of The Thursday Murder Club. I find the story and characters too contrived and blah. I was able to guess the murderer/s early on. And the motive, hint: Strangers On A Train, a brilliantly written murder mystery.

Sorry Mr. Thorogood, but I regret to say, I have to take a pass on the future installments. Mr. Thorogood is the creator of the popular British telly series Death In Paradise which I have never seen. I know what it is about but for some reason, I was never interested in the series.

The Sound Of Magic

tags: drama, fantasy, friendship, Korean, magic, musical, mystery, Netflix streaming

6 complete episodes, May 6, 2022

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

From AsianWiki

Yoon A-Yi is a high school student; she supports herself and her younger sister by working part-time jobs. She doesn't know where her parents are. Her father was driven away from home because of debt collectors and her mother then left home. Even with her poor financial situation, she is able to rank near the top at her school academically. She also has a pretty appearance. Yoon A-Yi wants to become an adult as soon as possible to have a stable job. Meanwhile, her classmate is Na Il-Deung. He regularly competes with Yoon A-Yi to receive the top grade, but they begin to have feelings for each other. One day, Yoon A-Yi meets Magician Lee-Eul at an abandoned amusement park. He puts on magic shows to people who tell him they believe in magic. He is a mysterious person, but he comforts Yoon A-Yi, who told him that she believes in magic.

Ji Chang-Wook plays the magician. He looks like he lost a lot of weight, his face is so thin. The promotional still photos look magical. 

Watch the Disneyesque sequence after end of credits. This is not a comedy nor romance but a beautiful drama fantasy with some life lessons. Highly recommended.

Ji Chang-Wook as magician Lee-Eul

Do you believe in magic?

Make your own fantasy...

Spread your worn out hopes 

That you crumpled and put away

Sincerely, sincerely

When I believe in myself

I finally find out 

The secrets of all that magic

If you just break out of the mold

Of the word "destiny"

There is a world

Just for you

Make your own fantasy...

The Honourable Schoolboy

tags: espionage, reread, thriller

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From GoodReads

John le Carré's classic novels deftly navigate readers through the intricate shadow worlds of international espionage with unsurpassed skill and knowledge and have earned him -- and his hero, British Secret Service agent George Smiley -- unprecedented worldwide acclaim.

In this classic masterwork, le Carré expands upon his extraordinary vision of a secret world as George Smiley goes on the attack.

In the wake of a demoralizing infiltration by a Soviet double agent, Smiley has been made ringmaster of the Circus (aka the British Secret Service). Determined to restore the organization's health and reputation, and bent on revenge, Smiley thrusts his own handpicked operative into action. Jerry Westerby, "The Honourable Schoolboy," is dispatched to the Far East. A burial ground of French, British, and American colonial cultures, the region is a fabled testing ground of patriotic allegiances and a new showdown is about to begin.

I was compelled to reread The Honourable Schoolboy after reading The Matchmaker: A Spy In Berlin which I borrowed because of high rating and glowing reviews, comparing it to works of Graham Greene and John le Carré. No way! The story and main character Anne of The Matchmaker are dull dull dull, the novel devoid of suspense. Nice try, Mr. Paul Vidich and promoters, but it was a no and zero star for me.

It was 10 years ago when I last read The Honourable Schoolboy which I deem the best of the George Smiley Versus Karla trilogy. The storytelling is beautifully written and brilliant with le Carré's signature biting sense of humor, and characterization is topnotch. Still 5-star out of 5 spy thriller.

The novel is set mostly in Asia - Hong Kong, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, a little bit in China and Tuscany, Italy. Extra point for making me nostalgic re familiar Hong Kong scenes such as Wanchai, Causeway Bay, Mid-Levels, Victoria Peak, Happy Valley, the shops, atmosphere, ferry, and people, etc.

The Overnight Guest

tags: mystery, ugh!

from GoodReads

True crime writer Wylie Lark doesn’t mind being snowed in at the isolated farmhouse where she’s retreated to write her new book. A cozy fire, complete silence. It would be perfect, if not for the fact that decades earlier, at this very house, two people were murdered in cold blood and a girl disappeared without a trace.

As the storm worsens, Wylie finds herself trapped inside the house, haunted by the secrets contained within its walls—haunted by secrets of her own. Then she discovers a small child in the snow just outside. After bringing the child inside for warmth and safety, she begins to search for answers. But soon it becomes clear that the farmhouse isn’t as isolated as she thought, and someone is willing to do anything to find them.

Oh for Pete's sake! Another highly rated "thriller" on GoodReads and Amazon but the book makes no sense and has zero entertainment value. It's a snoozefest from the first paragraph down to the last. It is poorly written with 3 POVs and timelines, going back and forth, back and forth, back and forth...Wylie is one of the dumbest fictional characters I have ever read.

Murder, kidnapping and imprisonment, rape, torture, more grisly murders that lasted for 22 years. If you are a normal person, don't bother reading unless you are not and love these icky stuff.

Blackwater: The Complete Saga

tags: fantasy, historical fiction, mystery, Southern Gothic, supernatural

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From GoodReads

Michael McDowell was proclaimed “the finest writer of paperback originals in America” by Stephen King, and “one of the best writers of horror in this country” by Peter Straub.

Now, McDowell’s masterpiece—the serial novel, Blackwater—returns to thrill and terrify a new generation of readers, with all six volumes available for the first time as a single e-book.

Featuring an insightful new introduction by John Langan, Blackwater traces more than fifty years in the lives of the powerful Caskey family of Perdido, Alabama, under the influence of the mysterious and beautiful—but not quite human—Elinor Dammert.

The Flood heralds the arrival of a visitor who will change the Caskey family—and the town—forever…

When the town builds The Levee, it proves a vain attempt to control a horrific power that can never be contained…

The House hides terrible secrets that whisper in closed rooms and scrabble at locked doors…

The War reveals family secrets more deadly and devastating than anything Perdido has ever dreamed in its deepest nightmares…

The Fortune brings happiness and power—but even greater terror… And finally, the mysterious saga of the Caskey family ends the only way it can—in terrible judgment and fury delivered under the cover of a relentless, earth-shattering Rain.

The book was originally published as a series of six volumes in 1983 and issued recently as one book. Wow! I didn't notice it has more than 800 pages. I couldn't put the book down, kept on reading from the first word to the last. It is a family saga a la Dallas, set in early 1900 but is more Southern Gothic than ordinary soap opera. It is equally sweet and creepy and I like the author's wit and sense of humor. 

A river monster crawls out of the river, takes the form of a human, and marries the eldest son of the wealthiest family, disregarding the matriarch opposing the union. They have 2 daughters, one a full human and one half river monster.

The book is hard to categorize and some readers put it under the horror genre. It is a little bit specially when some characters unexpectedly are torn limb by limb like a ragdoll while still alive, one character's head torn and impaled with lumber from a moving truck. Yikes! There are also a few vengeful ghosts living in a closet, mother-in-law from hell who has unreasonable behavior towards everyone including her children and grandchildren. Very Southern gothic. And the children, oh my, the children. 

Metal Lords

tags: comedy, drama, post-metal music, Netflix streaming, teen movie

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

from IMDB

Two kids want to start a heavy metal band in a high school where exactly two kids care about heavy metal. They try to find a bass player, and fail but they do find a girl who is very good at cello. If the three of them can't settle their differences and work together, they're never going to win the Battle of the Bands.

I couldn't care less if the movie is rated unsatisfactory by "professional" reviewers. Yes, it is clichéd and has a predictable ending but it is funny and engaging. I loved it. Sometimes, Netflix comes up with an enjoyable movie about high schoolers that is worth a second watch.