Me and Mr. Darcy - Alexandra Potter

The writing was not the best, but the story wasn't horrible even though it was completely predictable. I think it would be fun to go on a literary tour like Emily did. I would love to see all the places that Jane Austen visited, wrote about and was inspired by. Meeting Mr. Darcy would freak me out a little at first, but, if I was Emily, I would probably have jumped him and not taken 'no' for an answer.

One thing that bothered me was that Emily seemed to be more of a teenager than someone who's almost 30. She didn't sound anything like an experienced woman of 29 who was supposedly the manager of a retail business and had read all kinds of books. And she lived in New York and had never heard of a personal shopper? I found that hard to believe. The author didn't give her main character enough brains in my opinion. The way she composed herself in awkward situations and the things she said made her sound more like 19 than 29...and she sounded more British than American. I think the author wasn't paying enough attention to her character.

Maybe I'm being too harsh here. It is classic chick lit so I knew it would be a bit fluffy when I started reading. It was a light and fun romantic romp with Mr. Darcy. Although, I didn't appreciate the way the author compared Mr. Darcy to modern men, but I know she only did it to prove a point about setting realistic standards instead of searching for a fantasy. She could have made him seem a little less fussy at least.

I liked the other characters and Spike was OK, but I wouldn't want a messy guy myself. The ending was cute. I suppose this would be an entertaining beach read.

Bones - Season 1

I read one of Kathy Reichs's books and liked it a lot. That led to my interest in seeing the TV show, Bones, that is based on Kathy Reichs's life as a forensic anthropologist. The show features Temperance Brennan, the main character in the series book that I read. Emily Deschanel stars as Temperance and David Boreanaz plays FBI Agent Seeley Booth - I think the tension and chemistry between the two main characters is fantastic and really helps to drive the show forward. I also love the dialogue; the witty banter between them is very entertaining.

Unlike other crimes solving-type shows I've watched, the scientific stuff on this show is actually interesting to me, and I feel engaged in all the cases the whole way through each episode. I actually feel like I'm solving the crimes with the characters instead of just watching them do it. It's fun to guess who is guilty and who isn't.

I love the "squints", too. All of the supporting cast is great...T.J. Thyne is so nerdy hot as Hodgins! I think he and Angela, played by Micheala Conlin, hook up later. They are so cute. I hope they do end up together.

I'm officially addicted to the show, and I definitely want to own this series. I absolutely love and can't get enough of it! It just sucked me in - the science, the murders, mysteries, the romance. It's all so good!!!

Eyes Wide Shut

I like movies that make light of real occurrences and issues that are out there in the world and not usually seen or talked about, but this was too over-the-top. Yes, there probably are these elite groups of people who have secret lives and temptations and freaky clubs, etc., but this seemed too big and twisted to be believable even for a movie. Maybe that is the point, though, to make people wonder and question themselves and others....I don't know. I don't even think I'm sure I know what I'm talking about now. I didn't like it.

Meet the Robinsons

This movie was very sweet and lots of fun. I liked all the crazy inventions and characters. It kind of reminded me of Back to the Future only this was animated and the characters don't faint when they meet themselves in other time dimensions which didn't make sense to me because I thought that always happened when time travel was involved. But it was just a movie, so I guess it doesn't matter. I liked it. Good family flick.

Death Du Jour - Kathy Reichs

This was a pretty good mystery. Great for people who like A LOT of details. Tons and tons and tons of details. The murders are pretty messed up so that makes it scary. I was reading once in my car at night waiting for a friend to meet me, and I kept getting scared someone was going to attack me.

I liked all the different possible suspects. I had no idea who the main person was until the end.

Good book. Check it out.

Happy 5th Anniversary

to Josh and Heather!!!!!

Sixteen Candles

Oooohhh, sexy girrrrrlfrieeennnd!!!!

A cute blast from the past. This high-school romantic comedy had it all - cute leading man, Molly Ringwald, bad hair, fashion overkill, teenage angst, geeks, preps, parties and great 80s tunes...all good in my book. Some of the movie was a bit over the top, but what wasn't over the top in the 80s?!

Watch it for kicks when you have nothing better to do but reminisce.

The Hottie & The Nottie

My cousin made me watch this with her. It was supposed to be really funny and sweet. It was sort of funny in places, pretty gross in others, and it was kind of sweet at the end. Very, very, very predictable. I knew what was going to happen even before watching the movie.

The Ruins

A disgusting and disturbing waste of my time. What made me want to watch this?!

Breaker's Reef (Cape Refuge Series #4) by Terri Blackstock

So good! This is the last book in the series, but it's the first one I've read. I kind of wish I had started with the first book, but it was a loaner so I took what I got.

Great murder mystery that keeps you guessing till the end with lots of twists and cliff hangers. I loved that it took place in Cape Refuge and Tybee Island because they sound like such cool places. I always love stories with settings near the ocean, though.

Blackstock weaves passages about redemption and God's love into the story really well, and I don't feel like she was pushing religion on me. I like the way her characters have so much heart and hope for others. They just make you feel good. And Blackstock writes everything so clearly, too, so you can visualize the character's motions and emotions and what's going on just like a movie.

This is totally random, but I have to add that I think Cade, the Chief of Police, sounds like a total hunk! Teehee!

I want to read the rest of the series now. You should, too! :)

Sense and Sensibility

Angela always wanted me to watch this when we were younger, and I never wanted to b/c it looked boring to me. It was either this one or some other period piece. I can't remember now, but...anyways. It wasn't boring at all. Love the lines. In these movies from Jane Austen's books, you work so hard to get to that one line. They go through all this craziness about whether or not he loves her. Whether he'll marry her or not even if he does love her b/c she's poor. Then he's engaged. The whole time she's trying to be so good and realistic about it. I love at the end when she finds out he's not married, and she freaks out crying. She doesn't care to be proper any more, she's so overwhelmed. And then his lines about his heart being hers. Love it! Hugh Grant cracks me up b/c he's just so dopey looking, but you gotta love all his characters. He looks like our neighbor up the street who's so not like that, but I just can't help myself. Every time I see him I think of our neighbor.

Watch this movie ladies! You won't regret it! :o)

Over Her Dead Body

Kind of humorous but predictable yet again. I didn't really feel the connection between Paul Rudd's and Eva Longoria's characters while she was alive since she was killed in the first five minutes, so it was hard for me to care about her feelings for their relationship. The comedy was so-so. I really can't say that much about it. I was entertained, but I would recommend renting only.

Where Are You Now? - Mary Higgins Clark

This wasn't MHC's best, but it wasn't horrible. I wouldn't say I'm disappointed because the mystery was good, but there was an overload of characters and more police work than I usually care to read about...it didn't add to the strength of the story for me.

Also, I didn't feel the connection between Carolyn and her missing brother, Mack. She talked about him a lot, but it seemed to be just that - talk. I didn't feel sad at the end the way I'm sure MHC intended her readers to feel. It was an OK ending, and the epilogue certainly wrapped things up nicely, but it lacked a lot for me to be able to call this a satisfying read.

Transformers

Frikkin' awesome! Love Shia Labeouf (quite the cutie), love action/sci-fi/comedy/bit-of-romance films. Autobots battle the Decepticons! Must save mankind! Fantastic graphics! Oh yeah! Another A+ for Steven Spielberg. Looking forward to more Transformer movies. Autobots, rollout!





(I'm a goob.)

27 Dresses

Very sweet and, dare I say it, "cute". I knew the ending right from the start (who wouldn't figure that out?), but I had to watch it. James Marsden was in it, hello! That's the first reason, but also because I'm a sappy romantic who loves chick flicks!

I didn't like Katherine Heigl that much before she started doing movies, but she is growing on me with each new film. Her character in this is very admirable for doing all she does for friends and not saying "no" to people. She's a hero at times, really. And when the hero gets trampled, of course you want to see her lifted up and given the respect and happy ending with the perfect wedding she deserves. Oh, and I loved her adorable apartment!

Good, good!

Love in the Time of Cholera

I thought I was going to get an epic romance that would jerk the tears from my ducts, but not one of my eyes was moist by the end of this film. Maybe if I had read the book first, this movie would be better. I like Javier Bardem, and he acted well in his role...the story was just blah, though. I get the story (it's not hard to understand), but I didn't feel the emotion or sadness or love or happiness that the characters felt throughout the entirety of the movie. I felt it a little in the beginning, but by the end I was numb. I think all the sexcapades that Florentino had just took all the emotion out of it for me. Or maybe it was Giovanna Mezzogiorno's pale, mannequin-like face. I don't know. I'll admit that the ending was sweet and makes you want to say, "Aw, how sweet." I was just not as moved as I had hoped I would be.

Be Kind Rewind

This movie was funny, but it turned out to be way different than I thought it would be. It was sweet at the end and kind of sad, too. I'm not sure what happened at the end because there was no real conclusion...keep the store or demolish it??? Not sure about that. I do know that Jack Black was hilarious as per usual, and I love all the Sweded movies. My favorite has to be the Ghostbusters one. So great, "...when you're walkin' down the street, and you see a little ghost...What you gonna do about Ghostbuuusterrrrs?!" Hahahaha....loved it!

Jumper

Decent action flick. There was a love story, and that is always a plus for me with these types of movies. I did like the whole movie, but I wish there had been some flashback scenes of the battles between jumpers and paladins. I think that some of those might have made the movie a bit more intense and interesting. It seemed like the characters just talking about the history of the war only skimmed the surface of it all. Looks like there was a bit of a lead off at the end, and, if there is another installment of Jumper, I might go see it. If Hayden Christensen is in it, I will definitely see it. He's hot!

Juno

So much heart and comedy. Juno was a sweet and hilarious surprise. The writing was clever, and Ellen Page's acting was stellar. I loved the whole movie (so many great lines to memorize), and I cried at the end. I didn't realize that this would be one, but it was a feel-good tear-jerker, and those are the best kind. I will probably buy this later. See it!

The Other Boleyn Girl (movie)

I thought this movie was a somewhat decent representation of the book. It was hard to dislike King Henry so much this time around since he was played by Eric Bana (whew!). The story was kind of summed up in parts with quick scene changes and long periods of time going by in just minutes. I didn't like that, but you can only do so much with a couple hours for a movie. My one gripe about this film is that the ending concerning Anne and George's relationship and what they did and what happened as a result of it was changed so that we're only led to believe that it may have happened. You don't find anything out for sure, and you don't get as twisted and dramatic an ending as you do in the book. The ending was still dramatic, but I think they should have left it alone. Still, it was a good flick....the love scenes could have been longer or more intense (hehe), but they were satisfactory, too. ;o)

A brief paws...

The Bourne Ultimatum

Two words - Kick Ass! This movie rocks. Jason Bourne is back and better than ever! I love Matt Damon, and he is just supreme in this movie.

Once again, Jason is trying to find out who he is and why he does what he does. This is a non-stop thrill ride from start to finish. The action is quick and unpredictable, and the stunts are amazing as per usual. Smart technology, high speed chases, insane car crashes, intense dialogue and well choreographed fight scenes all add up to a fantastic film in my book.

I hope there will be another one of these awesome movies down the line because I love the Bourne series.

The Happening

I saw this on opening night which is something I rarely do these days, but it was M. Night Shyamalan's first R rated film so I gave in to the idea of that alone. I wasn't disappointed, but I wasn't blown away either. It's a good movie, but when I walked out of the theater I wasn't sure what to think. Now thinking back over the film, I realize that the hypothetical "happening" makes sense. It all boils down to humanity's affect on mother nature. Why couldn't plants evolve to defend themselves? Plants do communicate, and there were cited examples of that in the film. Evolution is a part of life for all living things, and even though this film is a little far fetched, it's somewhat believeable, and that makes it kind of scary. And now that I think about it, the whole bee thing in the beginning of the movie makes me wonder if that was supposed to be viewed as the catalyst for why "the happening" began when it did. It's an interesting idea. I would probably see this movie again. If you don't like thinking too much about your entertainment, go see it anyway because there are still plenty of comedic moments to laugh at and shocking deaths to gasp about to make it worth your while.

Laced - Carol Higgins Clark

This is the first book of the Regan Reilly series that I have read, and I will probably be enjoying more of these stories in the future. I was looking for something light and humorous with a bit of danger and mystery, and this book was it. The mystery wasn't so much a mystery as it was a chase really, but it was still a good story. I really like Jack and Regan's relationship; they solve crimes together and still manage to have a good time as well. I might start back at the beginning of this series when they were just dating to see how their relationship progressed over the years.

The story was good, like I said, but I would have enjoyed maybe a murder or two instead of just a few things being stolen...the ghost kind of made up for that part in a way, but there's nothing like a good old-fashioned murder mystery. Anyway, pick this up if you are looking for the same easy reading you get from Carol's mother, but expect a little more humor and adventure.

Hairspray

Way to go Tracy Turnblad...This is a fun musical, and I have never seen the High School Musical movies so I hadn't ever heard Zac Efron (Link) perform. He was really good as was James Marsden (hot as Corny Collins), Queen Latifah and surprisingly Michelle Pfeiffer. John Travolta cracked me up as Tracy's mom, and it was kind of weird seeing him as her at first, but I got used to it after the first couple of scenes. Christopher Walken is always good for a laugh, too. Funny and sweet and somewhat uplifting. Good for a fun rental.