Friday, July 31

Movie Review: Enola Holmes 3 (2026)


Title:
Enola Holmes 3
Length: 1h 45m
Released: 2026
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Action/Adventure, Romance
Rating: PG-13
Where I Got It: Netflix



SUMMARY:
Detective Enola Holmes heads to Malta, where her aspirations merge in her most complex and dangerous case yet.






REVIEW:
Number 3 babbbyyyy!

We are back with Enola and crew. This time they are in Malta, and Enola is about to wed. Gasp. But a kidnapping, murder, and many a mystery land on her shoulders to solve, so the wedding is postponed. 

Like the others, this was fun. It doesn't take itself too seriously, and neither should the viewer. There is humor and a LOT of fourth wall breaking. 

My biggest issue with the film was the lack of mystery. Yes, it is "there," sure, but the first like 5 mins for sure ruins the mystery. Sure, our fearless detective doesn't know, but we know. I did not like that one bit. Like, come on. 

It was fun to uncover the what and why. Enola was on a clock and 10 steps behind for so long. Plus...fixing what she broke was nice to see. I think he was being a little.....dramatic. But it is what it is. 

Oh! I did like the serious tones near the end. It was nice to keep this from being too campy. 

In the end, I had fun with this. The local was fun, the mission was okay, and there were some nice serious tones attached that helped deepen the story. Yes, yes, I laughed a few times at the funny moments.

3 stars from me. 






Thursday, July 30

3-in-1 Short Story Review: Compulsory, Rapport, & Home by Martha Wells



Author: Martha Wells
Title: Compulsory
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #0.5
Genre: SciFi, Humor, Short Story
Format: ebook
Pages: 8
Published: December 17, 2018
Where I got It: My shelf (Amazon)



Summary: 
Murderbot—the sardonic, almost-homicidal, media-loving android created by Martha Wells—has proven to be one of the most popular characters in 21 st century science fiction. Everything that makes this protagonist (it would be wrong to call Murderbot a hero) beloved of fans is on display in Compulsory.

While trying to watch episode 44 of The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon, Murderbot is—again, what is it with humans?—distracted by something that is technically outside its purview. A miner is suddenly in danger following a pointless (to Murderbot’s way of thinking) argument, and the choice is to risk discovery and leap into action, which would require hitting the pause button during a very exciting part of SanctuaryMoon, or to follow orders and stay still.

This is a tougher choice than it seems. But then, when has Murderbot ever been faced with an easy choice?



Review:
I'm finally going back and reading the short stories. Not sure why I skipped them. Maybe because my library didn't have them? Perhaps, per maybe. 

But yes. For this guy, we are at the very beginning. Back to when it all started. 

Murderbot faces a tough decision... follow orders and do nothing, or do something. This decision will change his future forever.

Quick story but a big one. I liked it. It was weird going back, but it was nice seeing the difference of the Murderbot he has become vs when he was just following orders and just a bot. 

Def worth it. Honestly....I say wait to read this until after a couple of the books. The difference was fun to see. Love a good origin story. 

This could've been a hair longer methinks. I would've liked to see more of the origin. 

4 stars. 








Author: Martha Wells
Title: Rapport
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #2.5
Genre: SciFi, Humor, Short Story
Format: ebook
Pages: 34
Published: July 11, 2025
Where I got It: My shelf (Amazon)



Summary: 
Perihelion and its crew embark on a dangerous new mission at a corporate-controlled station in the throes of a hostile takeover...



Review:

This was an interesting one. I wasn't sure I really wanted to read this one, but I'm in it to win it with these shorts!

So we are with Perihelion and its crew. We get to see a whole new POV. We get further insight into the Corporates from Iris' perspective.

I was a little nervous because we are not in the mind of Murderbot. I was scared, but I was pleasantly surprised. I did enjoy this lil guy. 

Def read book 1 and book 2 before diving into this one. 

But yes, short and entertaining. I'm glad I didn't skip it. 

4 stars. Not the same without our main ;) 












Author: Martha Wells
Title: Home
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #4.5
Genre: SciFi, Humor, Short Story
Format: ebook
Pages: 19
Published: May 5, 2020
Where I got It: Borrowed from library



Summary: 
This short story is told from the point of view of Dr. Mensah and follows the events in Exit Strategy.

The story picks up with Mensah returning to Preservation Station. While she deals with the bureaucratic and political aftermath, Murderbot is physically recovering and emotionally distancing itself — a typical defense mechanism for it.


Review:
Another short where we get to see from someone else's POV. Again...I nearly wanted to skip it but it didn't feel right. 

Here we follow Menash who is returning to the Preservation Station. While she is dealing with the aftermath, Murderbot is physically recovering and emotionally distancing....typical. 

I really enjoyed this one. I actually went back and re-read it. It was entertaining for sure! I like Mensah. 

You need to read the others before this one. There are some references and things you won't understand esp about Murderbot. 

This was my favorite of the shorts. I really liked it. 

5 stars. 





Reading Challenges
- Library Love #19


Tuesday, July 28

Audiobook Review: Platform Decay by Martha Wells

Author: Martha Wells
Narrator: Kevin R. Free
Title: Platform Decay
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #8
Genre: SciFi, Humor, Novella
Format: Audiobook 
Published: May 5, 2026
Where I Got It: Borrowed from library


Summary: 
After volunteering to run a rescue mission, Murderbot realizes that it will have to spend significant time with a bunch of humans it doesn't know.

Including human children. Ugh.

This may well call for... eye contact!



Review:
Murderbot is King of the bots!!!!!

Here we go again! Murderbot has volunteered to run a rescue mission. However, there will be a lot of humans that Murderbot will need to spend time with including...human children. 

Awwwwww I forgot how much I loved Murderbot. He is so funny and grumpy. So adorable. 

I think I really needed this!!! Honestly, I've been in a bit of a slump in July. A couple of pretty good 4 stars reads, but mainly 3 and 2s. Not sure why, but I needed this one! Thank you, Murderbot, for being the hero I needed. 

So funny. So intense. So good. 

I did miss ART, but it was nice seeing poor Murderbot with all these humans. Murderbot is a grumpy angel. 

The narrator is perfection. Great voices for all, especially for our main! He is great. I def recommend the audio versions. Sure, the printed word is good, but there is something about this narrator that really just fits and helps the story. 

I may have to go back and read some of the shorts to keep me entertained until the next book releases. I hope we don't have to wait too long for it!!

5 stars from me. 

Def read the other books before this one. 






Reading Challenges
- Audiobook #31
- Library Love #18
 

Monday, July 27

Blodeuedd's Monday: Bunny by Mona Awad


Series: Bunny (#1)

Format: 375 pages, Paperback

Published: February 6, 2020 by Head of Zeus

Lit fic/borrowed



This was surreal on crack, and I do like weird lit.

Samantha has writer´s block. She is a student and her group is scary. They all just all call each other bunny and hug. Then they invite her, she does hesitate but she goes and shit happens, like what is going on? I can´t tell you either because that means spoilers, but someone mentioned Alice in Wonderland and it fits. It gets surreal, there is weirdness and when you think you know, you do not.

Weird lit is fun. You never know where it is headed. I guess this is under horror, but it is never like SCARY, just wtf am I on?

I liked it a lot.




Samantha Heather Mackey is an outsider in her small, highly selective MFA program at Warren University. In fact, she is utterly repelled by the rest of her fiction writing cohort – a clique of unbearably twee rich girls who call each other 'Bunny'.

But then the Bunnies issue her with an invitation and Samantha finds herself inexplicably drawn to their front door, across the threshold, and down their rabbit hole.

Blending sharp satire with fairytale horror, Bunny is a spellbinding trip of a novel from one of fiction's most original new voices.