Book Review: Song of the Nile

Author: Stephanie Dray
Title: Song of the Nile (Cleopatra's Daughter #2)
Genre: Historical Fiction & Fantasy
Pages: 398
First Published: October 4th, 2011
Where I Got It: Borrowed from library

"Having survived her perilous childhood as a royal captive of Rome, Selene pledged her loyalty to Augustus and swore she would become his very own Cleopatra. Now the young queen faces an uncertain destiny in a foreign land.

The magic of Isis flowing through her veins is what makes her indispensable to the emperor. Against a backdrop of imperial politics and religious persecution, Cleopatra's daughter beguiles her way to the very precipice of power. She has never forgotten her birthright, but will the price of her mother's throne be more than she's willing to pay?"

This is the second book in the series about Cleopatra's daughter, Selene. I read the first one an age ago and I kept putting this off. Not because I wanted too, but other books came in the way and also, my old library never had the book. When I moved to Waterford the library here had it, so I snatched it up as soon as I found it. :D

I wanted to punch Selene and Juba in the face! I felt bad for both, but both were thick-headed idiots. Again...WHY CAN'T PEOPLE JUST BE HONEST WITH EACH OTHER! My goodness. Selene's ambition for Egypt and hatred that Juba had a tiny role to play in her parent's downfall made her hate him and not give him a chance. It also didn't help she was in love with her brother, Helios, so whenever she felt any love for Juba she felt like she was betraying Helios. A little creepy being in love with your brother, but in Ancient Egyptian culture it wasn't abnormal to marry your brother, but she was obsessed and it was a wee bit creepy to me. While Juba, since she made a scene at the wedding by dressing a little skanky and announcing she was Queen of Egypt, resented her. Plus, he thought she was Augustus' mistress, so he was bitter because he loved her. Just a hot mess of a marriage that could be easily resolved if they had a therapist and a nice chat. Sighs.  I do wish that Juba had more spotlight.

I wanted to stab Augustus myself...creepy, perverted man. >____>

Anyways....

This wasn't as good as the first one, but it was interesting and intriguing. Nothing would happen for page and then BOOM! Huge event! Then nothing and nothing and then BOOM! You never knew when the BOOM would happen, so it kept you reading, because you knew something was on the horizon and you wanted to know what it was going to be. I do love the magic intertwined with the story just like the first book, but this time there seemed to be more magic going on. Stephanie Dray did a wonderful job mixing it in with the story; there was one scene that seemed a wee bit cheesy, but the rest was wonderfully done. There was one part, near the end, that confused me and I am not quite sure what happened. I read the scene a couple of times, but I couldn't get understand how Augustus and Selene seen two different things happen. I know they were hallucinating, but...was Helios really there? Mmmmmmmmm....

I wish I could say more, but I don't want to really ruin anything more. I am excited for the third book though...I hope it gives a nice conclusion to Selene's life. 

In the end, this was okay. It wasn't as good as the first book. Selene and Juba needed a good kick in the head and all the drama between the two of them was totally unneeded. I am glad it ended the way it did, it made me smile. There were a few dry spots, a cheesy spot, and a spot where I was confused, but the rest of the book was good. I recommend that you read the first book first, because there is a lot of backstory you need to understand what the heck is going on in this one. For those that love Historical Fiction, give this series a go. :) You won't be disappointed. Out of five stars, I stamp this one with 3 stars. 

Favorite Character(s): Chyrssa, Julie, Lady Octavia, and Juba (at some points)

Not-so Favorite Character(s): Agrippa, Selene, Augustus (creepy old man), and Augustus' wife (>____>)    

Movie Review: Picnic at Hanging Rock

Length: 1 hr and 55 mins
Released: 1975
Genre: Drama and Mystery
Rating: PG
Directed By: Peter Weir
Where I Got It: Borrowed from library

SUMMARY:
(Again, I shall type up my own summary) A story about the girls and teacher who went missing in the Australian wilderness during a school outing. One girl comes back, but the rest are yet to be found. 


(P.S - I am going to try really hard to get back on my weekly schedule of posting a Movie of the Week. I may also include TV series)



TRAILER:

CAST:

Rachel Roberts - Mrs. Appleyard

Vivean Gray - Miss McCraw

Helen Morse - Mlle. de Poitiers

Kirsty Child - Miss Lumley

Tony Llewellyn-Jones - Tom

Jackie Weaver - Minnie

Anne Lambert - Miranda

Review:

I completely forgot to finish this review up. Oooh, it has been a while since I watched the film, so I shall try and remember all that I wanted to say...

This was a creepy movie. Not only that a whole group of girls and a teacher go missing creepy, but creepy in general too. The cast they picked did a wonderful job, because everyone acts creepy! Everyone acted like they were guilty of something; which everyone is guilty of something. It may not have to do with the missing girls, but everyone has their secrets. All this creepiness was made even more creepy, because this was made in the 1970s and the film-makers used the old tactics of horror films a few points.

It was creepy, but a good creepy. I really must find a different word, but the word fits this movie well. What do I mean a "good creepy"? Well, it made you want to keep watching and see what happens. Even though no real answers come about and if you know about the case there has never been an answer, but you feel like the answer is right there in front of you the whole time! So many theories are out there and the film-makers did a good job touching base with the majority of them. It's a film that makes you think even though it is creepy.

I do remember a side-line story that didn't seem needed in this. It seemed unnecessary and a stretch and it annoyed me. Oh yes...the ending also bugged me. I can't say what happens, but it bugged me for many reasons. 

In the end, this was a creepy movie. The actors they picked did a great job! There were a couple spots that seemed slow and/or unnecessary and the ending bugged me, but I did enjoy this movie. It really makes you think. Boyfriend and I had talked for a few minutes about what we thought happened to the girls. It is SO crazy that they literally vanished and no bodies ever where found. Creepy. Out of five stars, I stamp this movie with....4.

Favorite Character(s): No one really

Not-so Favorite Character(s): The headmistress (what an idiot and arrogant woman)

Re-watch?: Actually, I wouldn't mind a re-watch. 

Book/Novella Reviews: Away in a Manger & Bunny and Biscuits

Author: Lauren Willig
Title: The Mischief of the Mistletoe - Away in a Manger (Pink Series #7.1)
Genre: Historical Romance
Pages: ebook
First Published: July 2011
Where I Got It: Lauren Willig's website (freebie)

"A little novella about what happened after the quick Christmas marriage between Turnip and Arabella."









Such a cute little novella about Turnip and Arabella's quick Christmas wedding. Poor Turnip...can't even have a proper wedding night. Darn snow storms! But alas, that is what happens when you get married in the middle of the winter. I know, because I was born December 28th in the middle of winter, so snow tends to ruin many events. Sighs.

I'm glad Lauren Willig gave Turnip and Arabella not only a book, but a novella as well. They were such an odd couple, but they make one of the cutest couples out of all her books. Turnip is well...special and funny. I am certainly glad he got  a HEA. Bless Arabella, because I don't think I would be able to marry him. Be my best friend? Heck yes! Marriage...no. hahaha

In the end, this was cute and sweet and made me long for Christmas for half a second. After that half of second, I regret wishing for winter, because I hate winter. I recommend this for those that like the series and like Turnip. I shall stamp this with 4 stars. 

Favorite Character(s): Turnip and Arabella
Not-so Favorite Character(s): The Snow Monster (okay, there is no such character in this book, but I do hate snow and snow storms)

(OK, there is no cover for this Novella, so I found this picture and it seemed to sum it up nicely)

Author: Lauren Willig
Title: Bunny and Biscuits (Pink Series #6.1)
Genre: Historical Romance
Pages: ebook
First Published: February 14th, 2012
Where I Got It: Lauren Willig's website (freebie)

"A little Novella set on the night before Valentine's Day. Penelope is about to be married to Freddy and Charlotte is broken-hearted over declining the Duke's proposal of marriage. There is also a spy running about. All this is distracting Henrietta while Miles is trying to set up a romantic night." 

Miles and Hen are the couple that really made me addicted to this series, because I accidentally read their book first - which was suppose to be the second book of the series. I am so glad that Lauren Willig decided to give them a little novella. I did read somewhere that Lauren wants to extend this and make it bigger. I do hope so! It would be amazing. This is a nice little outline of a possibly greater story. 

Poor Miles....all he wants to do is have a nice little romantic night with his love, but she has been so distracted by the chaos of her friend's love-lives that she has been pushing him away. Totally get it, but he had this whole thing set up for days now. Luckily, she realizes she has been taking him for granted lately. 

This is an excellent set-up for the next book of the series, which revolves around Penelope and her adventures in India. I really need to re-read that book. Maybe I'll like her better. Who knows? In the end, this was cute and sweet. I wish that Lauren will extend on this story. It can be sooooooooooo much better. Again, I recommend this for those that like historical romance and the series. In the end, I shall stamp this with 3 stars. 

Favorite Character(s): Miles and Hen
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Penelope and Freddy

Book Review: Pandemia

Author: Jonathan Rand (& Christopher Knight)
Title: Pandemia
Genre: SciFi, Dystopia, and Contemporary
Pages: 370
First Published: May 2006
Where I Got It: Borrowed from the library

"The world was warned.
The last great flu epidemic near the beginning of the previous century killed millions upon millions of people. Now, a new super-flu has infected humans and wreaked havoc in every country of the world in a matter of days."

This isn't typically a genre I read, but this was picked for the October book in my Book Club, so onward I go. 

Honestly, it wasn't too bad for a dystopia. The beginning skipped around a little bit and I didn't like it, but the timeline does smooth out after a few chapters. Which...brings me to my next point...I disliked how short the chapters were. Each chapter was only about 3 pages long. I understand why the authors did this, but it just made the story seem choppy sometimes. 

Besides for all of the that the story was a fun ride. I especially loved the fact that it was set in Michigan and I knew all the places they were talking about. It made the story more personal for me. However, I do question how long it took to get to Otter Lake from Saline. I don't think the authors did their research before writing the book. Otter Lake is only 2 hours away from Saline and is not by Gaylord...unless there is another Otter Lake, but I doubt it. Hmmmm *shrugs* But Boyfriend is from Otter Lake, so it was kind of cool to imagine the town being completely empty. 

Anyways...the characters were interesting. A little predictable, but I'm glad there were only four main characters. It allowed for the reader to get connected with the characters, but not get bored with them. There is a lot of time and "slow" parts where nothing happens, so having a few characters helped, but there wasn't too many characters that it was overwhelming. I am glad they included an epilogue, but I didn't really like what happened. It seemed to HEA and "simple". 

In the end, this wasn't at all bad for a dystopia. I don't usually care for that genre, but I liked this book. It wasn't over-the-top and it seemed like if the bird flu where to conquer the world that would be how it is. I didn't really care for the short chapters and the beginning, but the rest was fun. I'm not sure if there is another Otter Lake up north (I was trying to look it up and found nothing), so I am left to assume they either were mistaken or they made it up or it exists but isn't on the map. *shrugs* Oh well. I am pretending they went to the Otter Lake I know. haha. I would recommend this to people who like dystopia type books or who are looking for something different on their reading shelf. Out of five stars, I stamp this with 4 stars. It is more like 3.5 stars, but i rounded. 

Favorite Character(s): Sierra and Eddie

Not-so Favorite Character(s): Kevin (he bugged me)