media update: December

Happy New Year!  Well, close enough.  This year was mostly good with the very notable exceptions of my MIL's bad fall, someone hit my parked car and didn't leave a note, and my dad temporarily going off the radar in Costa Rica and scaring the absolute shit out of us.

My wishes for 2024:  a well-paying WFH job and health and happiness for myself, my family, and my friends!  Manifesting like crazy and sending it out to the universe.

Asterisks denote something I particularly enjoyed or found especially worthy of my time; double asterisks are reserved for the creme de la creme.  As always, your mileage may vary.

When applicable, this page will be published as a work in progress and continually updated so I can provide timely feedback for advance reader copies.  Receiving an ARC does not affect my reviews in any way.

(Oh, and I can't figure out how to change the date of this post so...sorry)

FICTION

1. The Kingdom of Sweets by Erika Johansen:  A dark alternate version of The Nutcracker.  I've never seen the original (G is jealous, having been dragged to it numerous times as a kid), but I'm pretty sure it didn't include a flesh pit!

2. Five Bad Deeds by Caz Frear:  Ellen's perfectly curated life begins to fall apart when she receives a threatening letter, and five bad deeds in her past point to the potential suspects.

3. In a Dark Mirror by Kat Davis:  When she was 12 years old, Maddie and her best friend Lana committed an awful crime, believing that doing so would please a supernatural figure they called Him.  After her release, Maddie tries to rebuild her life but discovers a message board where other people claim to have seen Him...and they're planning a crime of their own.  I thought it would be a mystery or thriller, but it's just straight up fiction.  I liked it fine, but I was expecting something a little different, which is probably on me.  A real corker of a final chapter, though!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC!  The book will be officially released on June 18th, 2024.

4. The Instruments of Darkness* by John Connolly:  When a woman is accused of murdering her little boy, lawyer Moxie Castin asks private investigator Charlie Parker for help.  Of course, because Charlie's involved, it means things are much more sinister than they seem.

I've been a huge fan of John Connolly's since randomly picking up Dark Hollow (still in my top ten favorite novels of all time), so I was super excited to be approved for this ARC.  Full of tension, fan favorites (I'll forever be ride or die for gay hitmen Angel and Louis and the gigantic but gentle---if they like you!---Fulci brothers), and moments of exquisite sorrow.  In my opinion, it's his best book in years.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for the ARC!  The book will be officially released on May 7th, 2024.

5. Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver:  Two serial killers (think the Dexter kind, not the Ted Bundy kind) have a yearly competition to see who can take out a mutually agreed upon target first, and they wind up falling in love.  I couldn't wait to read it based on the premise, but it was disappointing.

2023 TOTAL: 51

NONFICTION

Nothing this month.

2023 TOTAL: 5

MANGA/GRAPHIC NOVELS

1. A Kiss That Stains the Innocence by Emu Soutome

2. Snow Fairy by Tomo Serizawa

3. Blood on the Tracks vol. 15 by Shuzo Oshimi

2023 TOTAL:  75 volumes of manga and 6 graphic novels

MOVIES

1. The Last Voyage of the Demeter:  The story of the doomed boat that accidentally brought Dracula to London.  Not as good as I was led to expect, but it was decent and I love Liam Cunningham (Ser Davos in Game of Thrones).

2. May December:  An actress (Natalie Portman) visits a notorious tabloid couple (Julianne Moore and Charles Melton), infamous for starting their relationship when she was in her thirties and he was 13, in preparation for starring in a movie about their lives.  I'm not sure how to categorize this; it had some funny moments, but it was the kind of laughter where you feel a bit queasy.  It's well done, and I expect Oscar nominations for the three leads.

3. The Blackening:  A group of friends meet up at a cabin in the woods for Juneteenth and find themselves in the crosshairs of a twisted killer.

4. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny:  The famous archeologist (Harrison Ford, of course) sets out to find a legendary dial that can turn back time.  I was going to give it a star until some last act goofiness, but it was a lot more fun than the bad reviews and poor box office led me to believe.  Go in with an open mind and you might enjoy it!

5. Prey:  Naru, a young Comanche woman, must protect her people from an alien predator.  Yes, THAT predator.

6. Priscilla:  A biopic of Priscilla Presley (Cailee Spaeny, who's fantastic), who was wooed (or, to be more precise, groomed) by Elvis Presley (Jacob Elordi) when she was only 14.  Directed by Sofia Coppola, so it's absolutely gorgeous to look at.

7. Barbie*:  The iconic doll (Margot Robbie) has an existential crisis and goes to the real world to find her purpose.  Despite its incredible box office success, I didn't think this movie could possibly work...yet somehow it did.  It's funny, the costumes and set design are great, the cast (which also includes Ryan Gosling as Ken) is terrific and I cried more than once.  Props to Mattel for allowing such a subversive, unapologetically feminist take on one of its most valuable properties.

8. Leave the World Behind:  A couple (Ethan Hawke and Julia Roberts) and their children rent a home for the weekend, only for the owner (Mahershala Ali) and his daughter to show up in the middle of the night claiming the country is under attack.  Gripping and tense, but the music is absolutely jarring...possibly intentionally so, but it really took me out of some scenes.

9. Saltburn*:  A college student (Barry Keoghan, who should get an Oscar nomination) with lofty goals tries to fit in with his very rich friend's family at the titular estate.  It took a bit of time to get its claws into me, but once it did, they were stuck until the very last frame.  A movie so psychologically dark you'll need a flashlight.

10. Morbius:  Dr. Michael Morbius tries to cure himself of a rare blood disease, but he accidentally turns himself into a vampire instead.  Only half a bottle of sangria made this dud even remotely tolerable.

11. Silent Night:  In this aptly named movie---there's hardly any dialogue and the main character never speaks---a man (Joel Kinnaman) sets out on a bloody rampage to avenge the death of his little boy.

12. Pet Sematary: Bloodlines:  A mediocre prequel to the Stephen King classic.

13. Murder Mystery 2:  Nick and Audrey Spitz (Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston) try to solve the kidnapping of their friend.  It was actually pretty funny, though that may have been the prosecco talking.

 2023 TOTAL: 87