media update: February

I'm posting this early because Saturday is a travel day and I doubt I'll do anything on the plane but sleep fitfully and watch The Hunting Party, which is exquisitely stupid but extremely entertaining.  A secret prison explodes and releases serial killers out into the world and a determined FBI profiler who adopted one of their (almost) victims is out to stop them?  Straight into my veins, please! 

My visit to St. Thomas has mostly been fun, with the exception of a brief illness and absolutely tearing into my brother.  (Criticism was deserved; the manner in which it was delivered was not and I am deeply ashamed.) Now that the trip is all but over, I'm anxious to get home to G, Momo, and hair that doesn't look like Roseanne Roseannadanna had a baby with Pyramid Head.

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.

FICTION

1. Kitten* by Stacey Yu:  Katie is an aimless young woman in her twenties just drifting through life.  Nothing much seems to interest her until she becomes obsessed with her boyfriend's cat.  A bittersweet story with some really gorgeous turns of phrase.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC!  The book is scheduled for publication on August 4th.

2. A River Red with Blood by John Connolly:  Private investigator Charlie Parker looks into the death of a boy who had been living at a facility for troubled teenagers.  Intriguing and well written. My only major complaint is that there isn't nearly enough Angel and Louis, but for me there never is.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC!  The book is scheduled for publication on June 2nd.

2026 TOTAL SO FAR:  3

NONFICTION

Nothing this month.

2026 TOTAL SO FAR:  0

MANGA/GRAPHIC NOVELS

1. The Emperor's Caretaker vols. 1-5 by Ichiha Hiiragi, Aya Shouoto, and Haruki Yoshimura

2. Adabana* vol. 2 by Non

2026 TOTAL SO FAR:  8 volumes of manga

MOVIES

1. Wicked: For Good*:  This picks up right where the first one left off, so I can't review it properly due to spoilers.  I'll just say that although it's not as good as its predecessor, it's much better than I expected!

2. Bugonia*:  Two men kidnap a biotech billionaire (Emma Stone) they think is an alien out to destroy Earth.  Deeply weird but absorbing.

3. The Rip:  A group of Miami cops (including Matt Damon and Ben Affleck) find $20 million in cash during a raid, leading to mistrust.

4. Tron: Ares:  I'm not going to bother summarizing this because it was a convoluted mess, but I did actually like it more than I thought I would!  It's quite possibly the reddest movie I've ever seen, though.

5. The Wrecking Crew:  Two estranged half-brothers (Jason Momoa and Dave Bautista) team up to find their father's killer in this entertaining action flick.

6. Relay:  A woman in trouble (Lily James) begs for help from a mysterious fixer (Riz Ahmed) who communicates through a teletype machine to avoid tracing.

7. Fall:  Two friends climb a 2000 foot tall abandoned radio tower in the Mojave Desert only to run into some serious problems.  Some hamfisted foreshadowing and a bizarre plot choice near the end, but it was tense and gripping.  Absolutely not for acrophobes!

2026 TOTAL SO FAR:  10