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Friday, February 10, 2012
Shutter the Front Door
Title: Shutter Island (graphic novel adaptation)
Author: Dennis Lehane
Illustrator: Christian de Metter
Bookmark: seriously? it's a graphic novel. I set it down once with a pen between the pages, then I finished doing the dishes and read the rest.
I noticed this on the shelf behind me while I was busy stealing the library's wifi the other day, and decided to pull it because I was too cheap to see the movie. It wasn't until I got home that I realized the movie was not based upon the graphic novel, but that they were both based upon one of those books with lots of words and no pictures.
That other book might have been a better choice.
I don't always get the point of graphic novels. I read the two which formed the basis for the Surrogates movie (I never posted them. Sue me.), and while the story seemed kind of interesting, the art looked choppy. It was kind of hard to view. Hard enough that I read all the text, and glanced at the images enough to give me some idea of where the speakers were (it was sometimes difficult to distinguish the scratchy lines of one character from the scratchy lines for another, so if they didn't address one another by name, I wasn't always certain who I was reading). I found that I had to remind myself that I was reading a graphic novel, and I missed the point of that if I never looked at the graphics, so I'd go back a few pages, glance at the art, and then go back to just reading the text. I had that problem with Shutter Island, too--the two main characters wore identical clothing, so I could only distinguish them when they took off their hats, and that wasn't often. Most of the time, it was in such a dark space that I still couldn't tell who it was. And without the pictures to explain what was happening, the plot is even harder to follow. I would have been better off with a wall of text to explain things.
My best effort:
US Marshall Ted Daniels and his partner Chuck Aule take the ferry to Shutter Island just before a hurricane hits to try to find a woman who has somehow escaped the mental facility which is isolated there. The facility houses criminally insane and dangerous people. During the course of four or five days, Ted becomes obsessed with cracking a strange numeric code left by the woman and finding the mysterious Patient 67 to which the code alludes. The hurricane isolates them from the mainland, shuts down communication, and plays hell with their power. The hospital staff seem to be hiding something, he has strange dreams which seem to lead him closer to the truth, and rock piles on the island's beaches seem to spell out a message from the missing woman in the same code he found in her notebook. Pretty reachy.
If you've seen the movie, then you probably know the rest. Maybe you can explain it to me. Maybe I'll get the real book and have another go at this.Labels: crazy people, drugs, graphic novels, irresponsible parents, murder
posted by reyn at
7:26 PM
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Monday, November 02, 2009
The voodoo that you do
Title: Count Zero
Author: William Gibson
Bookmark: strip of dinosaur stickers
This is another book I rescued from someone's garage. That's good, because I may have to read it once or twice more to figure out what the hell is going on.
I mean, sure, it's fun to read, but I think Gibson goes a little too far with the "tell the reader as little as possible and let them figure it out themselves" approach that other authors handle a bit better by at least telling us enough to know what's happening.
I'll give summarizing a shot.
There are three main storylines. You'd think that eventually these three sets of characters would intersect somehow, since they're all (apparently... i think...) chasing after the same thing.
Turner is a corporate mercenary, hired through his agent (who may be far more shady than you'd think) to help either steal the best young minds from competing companies, or to help those minds defect to another company. Technological secrets and the people who develop them are valued in Gibson's future, to the point that many companies maintain high-tech facilities where their employees live and work, with no direct contact with the outside world. (one of them is in a hollowed-out mesa, which is a pretty cool idea in itself) Turner is blown to smithereens in the first chapter. They collect enough of him to rebuild him in some sort of tank so he can be hired to help a scientist escape from one company to another. Turner must work with several lower-level mercenaries, one of whom tried to kill him in the past, and figure out which one of them is a mole, feeding information to his back-stabbing, double-crossing agent.
Bobby Newmark, operating with the handle Count Zero, is a wannabe hacker who, using a piece of code bestowed upon him by his own agent, finds something so powerful and strange that it blows his connection, knocks him out cold, and results in at least one death squad coming for him. His apartment is blown up by a missile attack while his soap-opera-addicted mother is inside, and in his desperate flight he meets two men who claim that the Network is full of voodoo gods, and that one of them saved Bobby's ass when his hack went haywire.
Marly Krushkova, still recovering from the scandal surrounding an art scam in her gallery that was actually orchestrated by her dirtbag ex-boyfriend (without her knowledge), is hired by Herr Virek to find the maker of a tiny diorama, really just items in a box, but it somehow captures their imagination, and is very like several other boxes, and nobody seems to know the source. Oh, and Virek is sustained by tanks similar to those that saved Turner, but the apparatus that keeps him alive occupies three semi truck trailers.
The thing that really gets me--and this might be due to the fact that I read it months ago, and may have forgotten--is that I'm not sure all three stories intersect. None of those characters actually meet each other, and I think I know the connection between Turner and Bobby, but either I never found a link betwene either of them and Marly, or I've forgotten it. It's a very strange book, but it still held my attention for the duration.
Seriously, though. Voodoo gods. In Cyberspace.Labels: hunky armed forces or government operatives, irresponsible parents, sci-fi, wizards
posted by reyn at
10:06 PM
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Saturday, December 06, 2008
Or just plain careless.
Careless in Red
by Elizabeth George
This is one of the Inspector Lynley series novels. I've never read any of them, but have come across the related TV series on PBS, so I figured it was worth a try.
Sadly, though it was somewhat interesting, I guessed all the major plot twists way before they happened. And it's set in somewhere on the coast of GB where all the people have funny names (Santo, Jago, Benesek, Cadan, Dellen, etc.). There's a lot of supporting characters, and with the funny name thing it was hard to keep track of what was going on for the first half or so (which made the obvious twists all that more disappointing).
If the series is worthy of PBS/BBC, I'll give it another try - maybe earlier in the series before the author ran out of ideas.Labels: Brit lit, irresponsible parents, murder, mystery/detective
posted by ket at
12:33 PM
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Tuesday, October 28, 2008
I really meant to keep up...
Sigh. This might be everything - I tried to slow down when I realized there was a backlog again. These are generally organized from good to bad-ish.
Playing James
by Sarah Mason
Mediocre reporter gets assigned to the police beat in a PR move for the department where they have her riding along with one of the officers (James). They’re both in relationships but have the traditional bickering and reluctant attraction, and eventually end up together. Really liked this one, and not just because they had British accents in my head while I was reading.
Rumble on the Bayou
by Jana DeLeon
Local small-town sherriff (daughter of the former sheriff) has to call in the feds when they discover a crocodile full of cocaine floating in a woman’s pool. Fed that's sent has history with the theoretical bad guy and doesn't understand small-town politics. Power struggles, deep hidden secrets, etc. Fun.
Stacked Deck
by Terry Watkins
Rather like what maybe happens to the girls from Gallagher Academy when they grow up – a secret network of super-awesome female spies traveling around and saving the world. Absolutely ludicrous, and I love it that way. Supposedly this is part of a series (“Athena Force”), but my library seems to only have this book. Thankfully the library also has a form where I can recommend things to add to the collection ("pretty please buy more books about hot female spies so I can live vicariously through the books!").
Don’t Look Down
by Suzanne Enoch
Sequel to Flirting with Danger; former cat burglar is now engaged to British billionaire (seriously, the accent AND the bank account? I’m in love) and goes legit, becoming a PI who has to solve the murder of her first client. As always, though I liked the characters the first time I was okay with not knowing what happened during their happily-ever-after phase.
Drop Dead Gorgeous
by Linda Howard
Sequel to To Die For; again, I was happy when we left the couple alone and happy and alive at the end of the book. But no, we have to have more random attempts on her life.
The Deadliest Strain
by Jan Coffey
Chasing a rare, infections strain of bacteria. There was potential for a romance that was never explored - that made me sad. I want either non-fiction involving bacteria OR fiction involving sex. This was neither.
Village Affairs: A Mystery
by Cassandra Chan
British, in an ambiguous time period, aristocrat/amateur sleuth helps out when his Scotland Yard friend gets called in to work a case. At least he has a high-strung model girlfriend to make things interesting...
Body Language
by Suzanne Brockmann
Best friends are attracted to each other but each thinks they don't stand a chance with the other. They pretend to be together so that she can make some jerk she works with jealous, pretend starts feeling real, then big misunderstanding and argument, then all happy in the end.
Seven Days and Seven Nights
by Wendy Wax
Rival radio talk-show hosts have to share a small apartment for a week. They have some history, are reluctantly attracted, etc. Poor communication ensues for a while but is anyone really surprised that they get together in the end?
Public Displays of Affection
by Susan Donovan
There seem to be a LOT of books out there based on the premise that this naïve girl has a hot fling (often on the side of a road) with a nameless but gorgeous guy, then goes off and marries someone else who proceeds to die, and then the nameless guy miraculously moves in next door and they realize they were meant to be together forever. Does this really ever happen?
Bad Girls Don’t
by Cathie Liz
Belly Dancer/free spirit extraordinaire is just what the uptight cop mourning his dead wife needs. (gag)
TailSpin
by Catherine Coulter
The Sherlock/Savich series really isn’t doing it for me anymore.
No Safe Place
by JoAnn Ross
Cop gets dragged into helping investigate the disappearance/death of her estranged twin (con artist) sister, with the assistance of a former cop who went bad (supposedly). Everyone’s redeemed in the end.
Kiss of Death
by Meryl Sawyer
Iraq war vet inherits an estate from his mysterious uncle, there’s lots of murder attempts that throw him together with the caretaker who, as usual, butts heads with him but is reluctantly attracted, etc. Don’t remember how it’s resolved.
Wizard’s Daughter
by Catherine Coulter
I remember a bit of this. It was weird, and involved a trip to an alternate realm at the end. Catherine doesn’t usually do the supernatural stuff. Very bizarre.
EDIT: to anyone who gets this multiple times, sorry! I kept finding books that were left out...Labels: Brit lit, burglary, crap, girl power, hunky armed forces or government operatives, irresponsible parents, melodrama, romantic "suspense", trashy romance
posted by ket at
12:42 PM
1
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Monday, July 28, 2008
I kindof want to quit my job and try this...
The Little Lady Agency
by Hester Browne
Melissa, the pliable, naive, obedient daughter of a scandal-attracting member of Parliament, is fired from her dead-end job, and, after accidentally becoming a call girl for an afternoon, starts a similar-but-not-quite service where, instead of providing sex, provides men with fake girlfriends to appease overbearing mothers, dates for weddings, advice buying clothing or gifts, and so forth. But because her father totally wouldn't approve, she dons a blonde wig, adopts a new persona, and calls herself "Honey", which is a bonus because the men don't really have to remember her name.
And then she meets Jonathan, an American who's now in charge of the office where she used to work and who needs help acclimating to London on top of his recent separation/divorce; he hires her all the time, rather wanting to hire her exclusively, and they have some chemistry, but it's weird because she's hired by the hour and they both acknowledge it kindof, but he takes her as his date to everything and she's his hostesss for a party and so forth.
It all comes to a climax at Mel's sister's wedding, where she's in the party and organized the whole thing despite her father acting like an ass the entire time, and Jonathan figures out who she is just before the wedding and wants to take her as his date, and she tries to be both Honey and herself, and it all kindof goes up in flames before Jonathan professes his love for her, not Honey, though she always thought he would never fall for the real her, and her father kindof apologizes, and she ends up happy. Yay!
I could totally wear a wig and retro clothing like it's normal, and there are so many men that need help. Anyone want to fund a start-up?
And then there's a preview at the end of the book for a sequel, where Jonathan is off in France and, though he asked her to not do the major makeovers/pseudo-dates anymore, she's about to do her grandmother a favor and transform a playboy prince. I see bad things happening here. Couldn't they have just left it with happily ever after??Labels: Brit lit, girl power, high society, irresponsible parents, trashy romance
posted by ket at
10:37 PM
1
comments
Meh.
Tribute
by Nora Roberts
Follows her usual plot of boy meets girl, they solve unresolved tragedy from her past, she almost dies at the end, but the baddie is captured/killed, they live happily ever after.
This time Cilla buys the farm where her (famous actress) grandmother mysteriously died of an overdose decades ago, falls for Ford who lives across the street, and stirs up memories of the past which results in mysterious accidents and stuff until the truth comes out that it was someone close to them and unexpected (Nora never gives hints), and then Cilla and Ford can get married.
I suppose that all could have been labeled with spoiler, but it's not like you read a Nora and think they might break up...Labels: irresponsible parents, melodrama, romantic "suspense"
posted by ket at
10:33 PM
1
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Friday, November 23, 2007
Green Acres, re-visited
Title: Heiress for Hire
Author: Erin McCarthy
Amanda, an heiress, is in small-town Ohio for the summer visiting a friend when her father decides she needs to grow up and cuts her off. Suddenly, she can't buy large lattes, or even groceries, so she decides to find a job that she's qualified for, which isn't easy. Dad, of course, figured this would send her running home, but she's determined to make it on her own.
Enter Danny. A local boy, he has a farm. And, he just discovered, an 8-year-old daughter. Turns out that girl he met at the fair and had a fling with the summer after high school had a (his) daughter and never told him. But now that girl's dead, and Piper's evil stepfather doesn't want her, so he drops her off on Danny's doorstep. Mark and her mother were rather verbally abusive, and Piper has some confidence issues, not to mention that her hair all fell out from stress. Danny certainly can't take care of Piper and run the farm, and Piper doesn't get along with his overbearing mother, so he hires Amanda to be a nanny/housekeeper (which she's okay with as long as no toilet-cleaning is involved).
Of course, both Danny and Amanda happen to be ridiculously attractive, but both are also fighting the attraction. Plus, Danny's mother doesn't like Amanda, and is afraid Danny will sleep with her and get her pregnant too (he has an ex-wife - they got married super-young because she was pregnant - apparently he's a baby-making machine!). (Don't worry - she miscarried, so Piper's the only kid, they subsequently divorced and are good friends - she's remarried now to Amanda's friend, which is who she was visiting, which makes me think there's a prequel to this out there somewhere).
Anyway, Amanda totally has a way with Piper, giving her self-confidence, and Danny starts to fall for her even more because of her connection with his daughter. Also, Amanda has a purse dog (maybe a teacup poodle?) named Baby; at one point Baby is almost eaten by a hawk (this takes place on a farm, remember?) but Amanda launches herself on top of him on a gravel driveway to save him, earning some skinned knees and elbows, plus a slice from the hawk's talon. This helps her gain Danny's mom's respect, but she still doesn't want her loving and leaving her son.
Of course, they eventually give in to temptation, even though Danny figures she's out of there by the time summer ends. But she reveals she loves him and wants to stay, and he proposes, and his mom realizes they're good for each other, and Piper's been in love with Amanda for months, so everyone's happy.
Wasn't too sure how I felt about this one at the start, since I don't do well with spoiled ditzes, but Amanda really grew on me. Might have to track down that potential prequel...Labels: high society, irresponsible parents, trashy romance
posted by ket at
11:29 AM
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Monday, November 05, 2007
Irresponsible Parents
Title: The Glass Castle: A Memoir
Author: Jeannette Walls
Bookmark: A Kroger coupon for kitty food.
This book alternately made me depressed, astounded, horrified, and blind with rage. It's hard to read a book which makes you feel murderous towards two of the major characters. However, I still couldn't put it down. I didn't read A Million Little Pieces, but this book is so unbelievable that I cannot help but wonder about possible creative liberties, although none were probably taken.
Jeannette Walls was raised by two of the most irresponsible parents I have ever read about. At times living in a shack, car, or just plain homeless, the Walls family moves around the country because of the mother's wanderlust and the father's fear that the government is after him (as well as his tendency to get the family into sticky situations).
Jeannette's father, Rex Walls, was a brilliant man who occasionally worked as an electrician when he wasn't falling down drunk, destroying their various living quarters, and practically killing their mother. It's hard to like a guy who nearly pimps out his 13 year old daughter (he knew she could fend off the guy, or so he claimed after), steals the money his children have worked desperately to raise in order to free themselves from their crazy parents, and promises the sky, or in this case a glass castle, while delivering almost nothing. Of course, no one person is completely evil, and when Jeannette nearly drops out of college because she is $1,000 short, he touchingly comes up with the money, albeit by hustling.
Her mother, Rose Mary Walls, was an artist who occasionally took teaching jobs to help support the family. However, at least once a week, she had to be coaxed to school by her children while she was in the midst of a ridiculous temper tantrum about how she was an adult and should be able to do what she wanted. She also doesn't do very well standing up to Rex, but Jeannette later finds out just how hard that can be, so you really can't blame her too much for that one.
The first story of Jeannette's childhood is of her being severely burned at the age of three. She was making hot dogs for herself on the stove (her mother was probably off painting or something - I can't remember) and somehow caught her dress on fire. She spent many months in the hospital. And the horrifying stories just continue from there - eating out of trash cans, eating a tub of butter because it is the only thing available, the grandmother sexually abusing Jeannette's brother, an uncle pleasuring himself in close proximity to Jeanette after trying to touch her inappropriately, being beaten up by other children, and so many more. Hard to read, hard to believe.
Makes me very grateful for the parents I have, the roof over my head, the food in my kitchen, and so much more.Labels: irresponsible parents, non-fiction, tragedy
posted by Kate at
3:17 PM
4
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