Burn The House Down

 

tags: Japanese dorama, Mei Nagano, mystery, Netflix streaming, revenge

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Anzu (Mei Nagano, charming and enigmatic) watched her family home go up in flames when she was young. Her mother, Satsuki, apparently left the stove on. All her material possessions were lost and, soon afterward, her family broke apart.

Satsuki developed generalized amnesia, and her husband, Osamu, married her former best friend Makiko. The two of them now live in the same house, which has been restored.

Working with her sister Yuzu, Anzu adopts the identity of Shizuka Yamauchi and gets a job as Makiko’s housekeeper.

Anzu: "That woman stole my home and my family…”

Lovely Mei Nagano as Anzu is all grown up and starring in a revenge family drama. I first saw her in Rurouni Kenshin when she just 13 years old. She's now 24!

Mei Nagano in 2016 Japanese high school dorama, Koe Koi

Highly recommended for Japanese manga live action drama series fans. I loved it!

A Room With A View

 

Beautiful music. Kiri Te Kanawa singing an aria, Chi il bel sogno di Doretta, from Puccini's opera La Rondine (The Swallow).

Julian Sands's death was all over the news feed last week. So sad. I've only seen 2 of his movies, A Room With A View and Warlock.

A Room With A View is one of my favorite movies of all time. I watched it a gazillion times since its release in 1986 or 87. I have 3 different copies. I first watched it on Betamax. Yup, Betamax which was what's available in the Philippines at the time. When we moved to Hong Kong the following year, I had to buy a VHS copy because Hong Kong didn't use Betamax and it had a different system too (PAL). After 3 years we moved to the US so I had to get another VHS copy because USA had a different system (NTSC). When DVDs arrived, of course I had to get it. Same with Sixteen Candles. The tapes of both movies are in a box somewhere in the basement.

A Room With A View is almost perfection with a superb cast. Helena Bonham Carter as Lucy Honeychurch - her luxuriant hair was to die for and I love her character getting peevish after playing a Beethoven piano sonata. Daniel Day-Lewis as Cecil Vyse - magnificent as a snobbish aesthete but accepting in his defeat, his acting was over the top funny. I think in his own way, he truly loved Lucy. Maggie Smith - great in her role as the uptight "poor" Aunt Charlotte with her defective boiler and all. Judy Dench - as Elinor Lavish, a gossipy writer of trashy romance novels. She included the kiss in Florence in one of her novels that Cecil mockingly read to Lucy. Rupert Graves was cute as Lucy's brother Freddy. Denholm Elliot as Mr. Emerson, Simon Callow as Reverend Beebe, and of course Julian Sands as dour George Emerson.

George Emerson and Jake Ryan (of Sixteen Candles) are the best male romantic characters in a movie but are almost impossible to find in real life. LOL

L'Arc-en-Ciel 30th Anniversary Concert

 

tags: Japanese, L'Arc-en-Ciel 30th anniversary concert, streaming on Amazon

Hyde is over 50 years old and he still looks young. I saw him in one movie together with Gackt, another Japanese musician. The movie is called Moon Child about vampires, if I remember correctly. Now I want to watch the movie again if I can find it.

Where Are The Children Now?

tags: mystery, sequel

⭐⭐

From Goodreads

The legacy of the “Queen of Suspense” continues with the highly anticipated follow-up to Mary Higgins Clark’s iconic novel Where Are The Children?, featuring the children of Nancy Harmon, facing peril once again as adults.

Of the fifty-six bestsellers the “Queen of Suspense” Mary Higgins Clark published in her lifetime, Where Are the Children? was her biggest, selling millions of copies and forever transforming the genre of suspense fiction. In that story, a young California mother named Nancy Harmon was convicted of murdering her two children. Though released on a technicality, she was abandoned by her husband and became such a pariah in the media that she was forced to move across the country to Cape Cod, change her identity and appearance, and start a new life. Years later her two children from a second marriage, Mike and Melissa, would go missing, and Nancy yet again became the prime suspect—but this time, Nancy was able to confront the secrets buried in her past and rescue her kids from a dangerous predator.

Now, more than four decades since readers first met Nancy and her children, comes the thrilling sequel to the groundbreaking book that set the stage for future generations of psychological suspense novels. A lawyer turned successful podcaster, Melissa has recently married a man whose first wife died tragically, leaving him and their young daughter, Riley, behind. While Melissa and her brother, Mike, help their mom, Nancy, relocate from Cape Cod to the equally idyllic Hamptons, Melissa’s new stepdaughter goes missing. Drawing on the experience of their own abduction, Melissa and Mike race to find Riley to save her from the trauma they still struggle with—or worse.

Just like the original, Where Are the Children Now? keeps readers guessing and holding their breath until the very last page.

I can't remember when I read and what was the last book I read by Mary Higgins Clark. It was so long ago. Where Are The Children is the most memorable of Mary Higgins Clark's books. When a sequel popped up in the library's recommendations, I had to borrow it although I have stopped reading her books more than 15 years ago. 

Mary Higgins Clark's writing style was simple without using big words but she had the ability to create complex interesting characters, although sometimes the stories are too forced. What I liked was her great sense of humor which is lacking in new novelists.

I already had low expectations before reading so I don't get disappointed. Alafair Burke did her best but she is no Mary Higgins Clark. Her main character Melissa, the girl who was abducted in the previous book almost has 2 personalities, one was brilliant and the other was brainless. How can she marry a guy and not meet any of his family and friends. She hardly knew what he did for a living, never noticed his home office desk is almost empty. She only started looking at his past after the child disappeared. SMH. 

The police were incompetent and never bothered to investigate meticulously if Melissa was indeed guilty of child murder.  

Knowing Clark's usual suspects (hint: close friends and even family), I guessed correctly who was one of the culprits. Why was this sequel even written after more than 30 years and the original author already dead? 

Not recommended

Death Of A Kingfisher

tags: audiobook, Hamish Macbeth, mystery-crime, "reread"

⭐⭐

When Scotland is hit by the recession, Police Constable Hamish Macbeth notices that the Highland people are forced to come up with inventive ways to lure tourists to their sleepy towns.

The quaint village of Braikie doesn't have much to offer, other than a place of rare beauty called Buchan's Wood, which was bequeathed to the town. The savvy local tourist director renames the woods "The Fairy Glen," and has brochures printed with a beautiful photograph of a kingfisher rising from a pond on the cover. It isn't long before coach tours begin to arrive.

But just as the town's luck starts to turn, a kingfisher is found hanging from a branch in the woods with a noose around its neck. As a wave of vandalism threatens to ruin Braikie forever, the town turns to Hamish Macbeth. And when violence strikes again, the lawman's investigation quickly turns from animal cruelty to murder.

I didn't particularly like Death of A Kingfisher when I read it 10 years ago and rated it only 3 stars. I listened to the audiobook as a "reread" and downgraded it to 2 stars.

The story is too twisty, convoluted, too forced and without the signature humor of M. C. Beaton. The latest Hamish books written by R. W. Green are very similar to this book. I suspect he probably wrote the last 8 Hamish Macbeth novels, from the 27th on. The presence of the regular village characters is almost non-existent which gave me the clue this is written by Mr. Green.

My beef with this novelette is the inclusion of a Russian thug, the 2 evil children spawned by Rhoda Penmark, and an unnecessary bloody chainsaw murder. The book also has the highest body count including the kingfisher, of any Hamish Macbeth books, 8 people and 1 bird.

Let's Get Divorced

tags: dramedy, Japanese dorama, Netflix streaming 

9 complete episodes

A politician and his actress wife have been married for five years... but their domestic bliss now faces a crisis, including a fling, an affair and potential divorce!

What should be an issue between just the two of them causes an uproar that sweeps up everyone in their orbit! Where will this dizzy divorce drama end up?

Laugh and cry along with this divorce comedy featuring a star-studded cast, including main co-stars Tori Matsuzaka and Riisa Naka, as well as Ryo Nishikido, Yuka Itaya, Koji Yamamoto and Arata Furuta.

 

Killing Moon

tags: crime, Harry Hole, mystery, Norway

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From Goodreads

Brilliant rogue police investigator Harry Hole is back, this time as an outsider assembling his own team to help find a serial killer who is murdering young women in Oslo in the next novel in the New York Times best-selling series.

THE HUNT IS ON AND THE POLICE ARE RUNNING OUT OF TIME. Two young women are missing, their only connection a party they both attended, hosted by a notorious real-estate magnate. When one of the women is found murdered, the police discover an unusual signature left by the killer, giving them reason to suspect he will strike again.

THEY’RE FACING A KILLER UNLIKE ANY OTHER. And exposing him calls for a detective like no other. But the legendary Harry Hole is gone—fired from the force, drinking himself to oblivion in Los Angeles. It seems that nothing can entice him back to Oslo. Until the woman who saved Harry’s life is put in grave danger, and he has no choice but to return to the city that haunts him and track down the murderer.

CATCHING HIM WILL PUSH HARRY TO THE LIMIT. He’ll need to bring together a misfit team of former operatives to accomplish what he can’t do alone: stop an unstoppable killer. But as the evidence mounts, it becomes clear that there is more to this case than meets the eye…

Harry Hole is in a bad bad shape and is in Los Angeles trying hard to drink himself to death. No one can blame him after his wife was murdered then getting fired from his job.

The opening chapter finds Harry drinking in a not too classy bar. It reminds me a little of Philip Marlowe specially Harry's opinion of Los Angeles, the reality of the movie industry, the homeless people occupying sidewalks. Overall a disgusting place in his eyes.

His credit card maxed out and his tab was paid by an aging former actress whom he had to rescue from bill collectors. He postponed his death wish by alcohol poisoning to help this lady by going back to Oslo to find a serial killer. He asked, as a free lance investigator, for a certain amount from the person police suspects as the killer to cover the lady's debt.

This is a very dark kinda twisty tale with hard to guess demented evil villain. One negative is too much red herrings and one story line was not necessary to the novel. The revenge of the Jeffrey Dahmer wannabe may be too much for some readers but I'm used to Jo Nesbø's bloody stories and his sense of humor makes the novel worthy of my time. I specially liked the parts when Harry and his odd group argue about musicians. (Jo Nesbø is a professional musician BTW)

advice to Harry regarding drinking and moderation

All you have to do is is decide beforehand where to draw the line, how many units, But, it goes without saying, you have to work at it.

You're smirking Harry, but I'm serous. It's about a sense of achievement. I can offer the world's best substance abuser as living proof.

Hm, I presume you are talking about that overrated guitarist you like so much.

Hey, have some respect for Keith Richards! Read his biography. He gives you the formula. Survival is about two things. Only the purest, best dope. It's the stuff mixed in that kills you. And moderation...

babysitting his 3 year-old son

Harry doesn't know any lullaby so he sang The Rolling Stone's Wild Horses and Hank William's Your Cheating Heart, and a blues song about cocaine...

after the murderer (wrong one) was caught they didn't have any reason to get together anymore

We can argue about other things, like who is the most underrated drummer in the world...that's Ringo Starr; the most overrated - Keith Moon; and the best - John Bonham of Led Zeppelin...

Highly recommended for Harry Hole and Jo Nesbø fans.

See You In My 19th Life

tags: fantasy, KDrama, Netflix streaming, reincarnation, romance

16 episodes, Saturday and Sunday starting June 17, 2023

It stars my number one favorite Korean actress, Shin Hye-sun.

Her dramas currently streaming on Netflix

Stranger, second lead

Mr. Queen, lead

Hymn of Death, lead

Sound Of Freedom

Get Your Tickets At: https://www.angel.com/sof

Exclusively in theaters July 4th, 2023.

Sound of Freedom, based on the incredible true story, shines a light on even the darkest of places. After rescuing a young boy from ruthless child traffickers, a federal agent learns the boy’s sister is still captive and decides to embark on a dangerous mission to save her. With time running out, he quits his job and journeys deep into the Colombian jungle, putting his life on the line to free her from a fate worse than death.

The film stars Jim Caviezel (The Passion of the Christ, The Count of Monte Cristo) who plays the lead role of Tim Ballard. Academy Award Winner Mira Sorvino (Mighty Aphrodite) plays Katherine Ballard and Bill Camp (Lincoln, 12 Years a Slave) plays “Batman”—Ballard’s right-hand man.

The film is produced by Eduardo Verástegui and directed by Alejandro Monteverde.

Share this film with the world by Paying it Forward at https://www.angel.com/pay-it-forward/sound-of-freedom

Tiger And Dragon

tags: dorama, Japanese series, Netflix streaming

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From IMDB

The show revolves around Rakugo, a traditional Japanese comedy that can look back on a 400 year long history. It tells about a Yakuza who goes to a Rakugo performer to collect debts, and a talented comedian who tries to change his destiny.

This 2005 Japanese series is streaming on Netflix. It is goofy and hilarious, a true dramedy with bursts of comedy and heavy drama. I love the over-the-top acting and contrived personal stories that only the Japanese can do without the viewers rolling their eyes.

Highly recommended.