Yesterday afternoon I finished reading Allegiant. It was the fifth book I read this year. That's not bad considering that I only read about four books last year. I've already eclipsed my total from 2013. That being said let's review Allegiant.
Allegiant starts out with Tris and her friends fleeing the city. After the events of Insurgent, Tris and her friends decide to leave the city and see what's beyond the fence. They find this compound where Tris' mother worked before she came to the city. They find out where she came from, and what kind of work she did before the events of Divergent. However Tris and Tobias soon learn that there's not a lot of good people who work at this compound. It's smart not to trust anyone who is in a high position in this compound because they only care about keeping their experiments going. They don't care what the cost is.
Before I read this book, I had heard some pretty mediocre reviews. So I was interested to see what that was all about. One thing that's different is that this book is split so that Tris has point of view chapters, and so does Tobias. I thought that was interesting and it was cool to see things through his eyes. I have to say about 440 pages in, I had a bad feeling about how it was going to end. I thought to myself, "The axe is going to drop and I don't know how." I was enjoying the book until I got to the very end. The end completely ruined the book for me. I don't want to spoil anything for those who have not read it, but I almost didn't want to finish it. I wanted to stop reading right then and there and start reading something else. I'm sure people who have read the book know what I'm referring to. That's how distraught I was. You know when these movies come out there going to split Allegiant into 2 movies because they always do. I'm not going to see it whenever it comes out.
Overall Allegiant was good until the final ten chapters or so, but those last chapters where brutal. I'm going to rate Allegiant 2.8 out of 5 stars. The series as a whole is worth reading I'll rate the series as a whole 3.8 out of 5 stars. I'll be reading the first Sherlock Holmes novel "A Study in Scarlet" over the next few weeks. I'll probably be posting a review for that whenever I finish it.
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Insurgent Book Reivew
This weekend I finished reading Insurgent. This was the second book in Veronica Roth's dystopian Divergent series. For those of you who have not read the first book yet, I will try not to give too much away.
After the events of the first book, Beatrice and her friends are on the run from the Erudite. They go to other factions who were neutral in the conflict seeking refuge. Beatrice also deals with lots of guilt and depression. People have lost their lives because of her, people have died that she cares about so needless to say she is having a difficult time.
If I have any complaints about Insurgent, it is the same complaint I had about Divergent. It's that it takes awhile for the book to get really exciting. I think back to the Hunger Games series where it was exciting from the first chapter and it held that for the most part until the series was over. In my opinion, these books don't get really exciting until the second half. I was hoping that Insurgent would be a little darker than Divergent, kind of like how Catching Fire was darker than the Hunger Games, but I would say Divergent and Insurgent are equally dark. There is one scene in the book I don't want to give it away, but it was really dark and when it happened I thought to myself, "I don't see this ending well." I read that part last week and it was at that point when I couldn't put the book down. I read almost 100 pages in one night. For me that's a lot.
Overall, I thought this was a very good entry in the Divergent series. I can't decide which one I like more, they're very close. so I'm going to rate Insurgent 4.5 out of 5 stars. Despite what some critics said about Allegiant, I'm still looking forward to reading it. After I finish that I will be reading more Sherlock Holmes novels, and I will finally read the Harry Potter series.
After the events of the first book, Beatrice and her friends are on the run from the Erudite. They go to other factions who were neutral in the conflict seeking refuge. Beatrice also deals with lots of guilt and depression. People have lost their lives because of her, people have died that she cares about so needless to say she is having a difficult time.
If I have any complaints about Insurgent, it is the same complaint I had about Divergent. It's that it takes awhile for the book to get really exciting. I think back to the Hunger Games series where it was exciting from the first chapter and it held that for the most part until the series was over. In my opinion, these books don't get really exciting until the second half. I was hoping that Insurgent would be a little darker than Divergent, kind of like how Catching Fire was darker than the Hunger Games, but I would say Divergent and Insurgent are equally dark. There is one scene in the book I don't want to give it away, but it was really dark and when it happened I thought to myself, "I don't see this ending well." I read that part last week and it was at that point when I couldn't put the book down. I read almost 100 pages in one night. For me that's a lot.
Overall, I thought this was a very good entry in the Divergent series. I can't decide which one I like more, they're very close. so I'm going to rate Insurgent 4.5 out of 5 stars. Despite what some critics said about Allegiant, I'm still looking forward to reading it. After I finish that I will be reading more Sherlock Holmes novels, and I will finally read the Harry Potter series.
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Sherlock Series Two Review
Last night I finished watching series two of the BBC series Sherlock. As you may know I really enjoyed series one of the show. I will say right now series two takes it to a whole new level. I will take each episode and break it down starting with the first one. Don't worry I won't spoil anything in this review.
The first episode is the Scandal in Belgravia. The Irene Adler episode. There's a really great scene when Sherlock looks at her and he can't size her up. He looks over at Watson and starts sizing him up. You can see cliff notes appear on the screen and he looks back at Irene Adler and you just see question marks appear. At that moment I knew it was going to be a great episode, I knew she would be great competition for Sherlock. There's also a very funny scene in this episode with Mycroft, who is Sherlock's older brother.
The second episode was The Hounds of Baskerville episode. In this episode Sherlock's and Watson's client is a man who claims his father was murdered my a giant hound. At first Sherlock thinks his client is crazy, but as he digs deeper in the case he realizes that he is not. There's a pretty interesting twist in this case I don't want to give it away. Even though it was a very good episode, I think it was the weak link of the three. It's not necessarily a gripe with the episode I just feel like the other two episodes where so much better.
That brings me to the final episode of series two, The Reichenbach Fall. This is the Jim Moriarty episode. This episode was intense to say the least! I knew going into this episode that Moriarty was crazy. But by the end of the episode I thought to myself, "This guy is so insane!" He's not just trying to kill Sherlock Holmes, he's going after his legacy and reputation. He's trying to take everything Sherlock has. Moriarty reminded me a lot of the Joker from the Dark Knight. Which is fitting because Sherlock Holmes and Jim Moriarty are the original Batman and Joker. Moriarty keeps telling Sherlock "You're just like me." It reminded me of when The Joker told Batman "To them you're just a freak like me."
Overall I loved series two of Sherlock even more than series one, and I loved series one. If you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes I highly recommend this show. I'm going to give Sherlock series two 4.7 out of 5 stars. I can't wait to see series three. I believe it comes out on blu-ray on Tuesday. I will also be posting my review of Insurgent within the next couple days. So be on the lookout for that. Thanks for reading everybody
The first episode is the Scandal in Belgravia. The Irene Adler episode. There's a really great scene when Sherlock looks at her and he can't size her up. He looks over at Watson and starts sizing him up. You can see cliff notes appear on the screen and he looks back at Irene Adler and you just see question marks appear. At that moment I knew it was going to be a great episode, I knew she would be great competition for Sherlock. There's also a very funny scene in this episode with Mycroft, who is Sherlock's older brother.
The second episode was The Hounds of Baskerville episode. In this episode Sherlock's and Watson's client is a man who claims his father was murdered my a giant hound. At first Sherlock thinks his client is crazy, but as he digs deeper in the case he realizes that he is not. There's a pretty interesting twist in this case I don't want to give it away. Even though it was a very good episode, I think it was the weak link of the three. It's not necessarily a gripe with the episode I just feel like the other two episodes where so much better.
That brings me to the final episode of series two, The Reichenbach Fall. This is the Jim Moriarty episode. This episode was intense to say the least! I knew going into this episode that Moriarty was crazy. But by the end of the episode I thought to myself, "This guy is so insane!" He's not just trying to kill Sherlock Holmes, he's going after his legacy and reputation. He's trying to take everything Sherlock has. Moriarty reminded me a lot of the Joker from the Dark Knight. Which is fitting because Sherlock Holmes and Jim Moriarty are the original Batman and Joker. Moriarty keeps telling Sherlock "You're just like me." It reminded me of when The Joker told Batman "To them you're just a freak like me."
Overall I loved series two of Sherlock even more than series one, and I loved series one. If you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes I highly recommend this show. I'm going to give Sherlock series two 4.7 out of 5 stars. I can't wait to see series three. I believe it comes out on blu-ray on Tuesday. I will also be posting my review of Insurgent within the next couple days. So be on the lookout for that. Thanks for reading everybody
Friday, January 24, 2014
Divergent Book Review
I just finished reading the first book in the Divergent Series now I'm reviewing it. Don't worry no spoilers in this review you're safe with me.
Divergent was written by Veronica Roth and it takes place in futuristic Chicago where society is split into five factions Abnegation, Candor, Dauntless, Amity, and Erudite. The story follows a sixteen year old girl named Beatrice and she like everybody else in her class is required to take an aptitude test. This determines what faction they are best suited for. However Beatrice's test results were inconclusive and she is labeled as Divergent. Now she has to choose which faction to join.
I was very excited to read Divergent. People have compared it to The Hunger Games series and I really enjoyed reading the Hunger Games series. I can see why it get those comparisons because there are similarities. The story is told through the eyes of a sixteen year old girl like The Hunger Games, It has the same style that the Hunger Games had where the story is told in first person. I love first person narratives because that brings you along for the ride. It makes you feel like you're in these environments. There's a love story brewing between Beatrice and someone from the faction she chooses to join that is also similar to the love story in the Hunger Games. There are also some other characters in Divergent that are similar to some of the characters in the Hunger Games. I don't want to spoil those of people who have not read the book.
If I have any gripes with Divergent it's that it takes awhile for the story to get going. But at the same time it was never boring. It takes awhile for the story to take shape. However in the final five chapters that's when the big action scenes happening and they were very enthralling.
Overall I really enjoyed Divergent. It was intriguing, it kept me guessing, and the final action scenes were awesome. If you enjoyed reading the Hunger Games series, you will enjoy Divergent. I'm going to give it 4.4 out of 5 stars. Be on the look out for my review of series two of Sherlock, and I will start reading Insurgent as soon as tomorrow. I will have a review up when I finish reading it. Thanks for reading.
Divergent was written by Veronica Roth and it takes place in futuristic Chicago where society is split into five factions Abnegation, Candor, Dauntless, Amity, and Erudite. The story follows a sixteen year old girl named Beatrice and she like everybody else in her class is required to take an aptitude test. This determines what faction they are best suited for. However Beatrice's test results were inconclusive and she is labeled as Divergent. Now she has to choose which faction to join.
I was very excited to read Divergent. People have compared it to The Hunger Games series and I really enjoyed reading the Hunger Games series. I can see why it get those comparisons because there are similarities. The story is told through the eyes of a sixteen year old girl like The Hunger Games, It has the same style that the Hunger Games had where the story is told in first person. I love first person narratives because that brings you along for the ride. It makes you feel like you're in these environments. There's a love story brewing between Beatrice and someone from the faction she chooses to join that is also similar to the love story in the Hunger Games. There are also some other characters in Divergent that are similar to some of the characters in the Hunger Games. I don't want to spoil those of people who have not read the book.
If I have any gripes with Divergent it's that it takes awhile for the story to get going. But at the same time it was never boring. It takes awhile for the story to take shape. However in the final five chapters that's when the big action scenes happening and they were very enthralling.
Overall I really enjoyed Divergent. It was intriguing, it kept me guessing, and the final action scenes were awesome. If you enjoyed reading the Hunger Games series, you will enjoy Divergent. I'm going to give it 4.4 out of 5 stars. Be on the look out for my review of series two of Sherlock, and I will start reading Insurgent as soon as tomorrow. I will have a review up when I finish reading it. Thanks for reading.
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Sherlock Series One Review
Tonight I finished series one of Sherlock. As I promised in my last review I'm now writing my review of it.
I have heard many good things about this show before I watched it. Finally I had enough so I went out and bought the first two seasons on Blu-ray. And I will say right now I should have watched this a long time ago. Sherlock is very good.
Benedict Cumberbatch plays Sherlock Holmes and he did a stellar job. I've come to expect that from him every time I see him in something. He just never disappoints. Martin Freeman plays Watson and he also does a great job. The next time I watch The Desolation of Smaug, I will enjoy the scenes when Bilbo and Smaug have dialogue even more than I did the first time. Because Cumberbatch voices Smaug and Freeman plays Bilbo.
One thing I love about this show is that when Sherlock is investigating a crime scene, cliff notes appear on the screen to show you what his mind is processing. That brings the viewer along for the ride. That's one area where the Sherlock Holmes movies directed by Guy Ritchie starring Robert Downey Jr. let me down. The other thing I love about the show is that it does a great job showing how disconnected from reality Sherlock Holmes is. For example there's a scene when Watson yells at Holmes and says "Do you realize that there are lives at stake?" Holmes just said "Does that help me solve the case? No? Then I don't care." That shows that it's all about the game for Holmes. He works the cases for the sake of it giving him something to do because he gets bored really easily.
I don't consider Moriarty as spoiler because you know he'll be in a Sherlock Holmes Story. Kind of like how a good Batman storyline will have The Joker. You get introduced to Moriarty in the third and final episode of the season. He had a great introduction and I can't wait to see what he does in Series two. Although so far I prefer the Moriarty in "The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes" book by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Mainly because it was very clear that Holmes was afraid of him in the book. So far that hasn't happened yet. However this is by far the best version of Sherlock Holmes put to screen. I'm going to give Sherlock Series one 4.5 out of 5 stars.
I have heard many good things about this show before I watched it. Finally I had enough so I went out and bought the first two seasons on Blu-ray. And I will say right now I should have watched this a long time ago. Sherlock is very good.
Benedict Cumberbatch plays Sherlock Holmes and he did a stellar job. I've come to expect that from him every time I see him in something. He just never disappoints. Martin Freeman plays Watson and he also does a great job. The next time I watch The Desolation of Smaug, I will enjoy the scenes when Bilbo and Smaug have dialogue even more than I did the first time. Because Cumberbatch voices Smaug and Freeman plays Bilbo.
One thing I love about this show is that when Sherlock is investigating a crime scene, cliff notes appear on the screen to show you what his mind is processing. That brings the viewer along for the ride. That's one area where the Sherlock Holmes movies directed by Guy Ritchie starring Robert Downey Jr. let me down. The other thing I love about the show is that it does a great job showing how disconnected from reality Sherlock Holmes is. For example there's a scene when Watson yells at Holmes and says "Do you realize that there are lives at stake?" Holmes just said "Does that help me solve the case? No? Then I don't care." That shows that it's all about the game for Holmes. He works the cases for the sake of it giving him something to do because he gets bored really easily.
I don't consider Moriarty as spoiler because you know he'll be in a Sherlock Holmes Story. Kind of like how a good Batman storyline will have The Joker. You get introduced to Moriarty in the third and final episode of the season. He had a great introduction and I can't wait to see what he does in Series two. Although so far I prefer the Moriarty in "The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes" book by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Mainly because it was very clear that Holmes was afraid of him in the book. So far that hasn't happened yet. However this is by far the best version of Sherlock Holmes put to screen. I'm going to give Sherlock Series one 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes Book Review
Before I got my kindle, I had a few books on my to read list. That list has now multiplied that is what owning a kindle does.
The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes was written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1894. It's a series of short stories that chronicle various adventures of Sherlock Holmes. All the stories are narrated by Sherlock's friend and sidekick Dr. Watson.
The book is very well written, even if the adventure that Holmes and Watson are on is not that exciting, it's still an entertaining read because the characters are so great. The book does a very good job showing what kind of person Sherlock Holmes is. He is very intelligent, and he is a very good person. However Sherlock Holmes is not perfect by any means. One chapter begins by telling the reader of how Holmes had a drug addiction. But he uses is intellect and skills for good purposes. So he does have redeeming qualities.
My favorite adventures of the book were the last two. The Naval Treaty, where Holmes and Watson are helping a man who had some important documents stolen from his office. This was one of the most challenging cases in the book because there was not a lot of evidence left behind. The person who did it didn't leave any footprints or anything of the like. The last adventure the villain was Professor Moriarty who is the most well known Sherlock Holmes villain. The book did a really good job showing that Moriarty was the only villain Holmes feared. I don't want to spoil how it ended, but it was the most gripping chapter in the book.
Overall, I thought this book was well worth reading. To anyone who owns a kindle I got it for free. I highly recommend that you read it if you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes. I'm going to give The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes 4.4 out of 5 stars. I will begin reading the first book in the Divergent series this afternoon. I will post a review for that when I finish it. And I will start Watching The BBC Sherlock series within the next couple days. I will review each season as a watch it.
The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes was written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1894. It's a series of short stories that chronicle various adventures of Sherlock Holmes. All the stories are narrated by Sherlock's friend and sidekick Dr. Watson.
The book is very well written, even if the adventure that Holmes and Watson are on is not that exciting, it's still an entertaining read because the characters are so great. The book does a very good job showing what kind of person Sherlock Holmes is. He is very intelligent, and he is a very good person. However Sherlock Holmes is not perfect by any means. One chapter begins by telling the reader of how Holmes had a drug addiction. But he uses is intellect and skills for good purposes. So he does have redeeming qualities.
My favorite adventures of the book were the last two. The Naval Treaty, where Holmes and Watson are helping a man who had some important documents stolen from his office. This was one of the most challenging cases in the book because there was not a lot of evidence left behind. The person who did it didn't leave any footprints or anything of the like. The last adventure the villain was Professor Moriarty who is the most well known Sherlock Holmes villain. The book did a really good job showing that Moriarty was the only villain Holmes feared. I don't want to spoil how it ended, but it was the most gripping chapter in the book.
Overall, I thought this book was well worth reading. To anyone who owns a kindle I got it for free. I highly recommend that you read it if you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes. I'm going to give The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes 4.4 out of 5 stars. I will begin reading the first book in the Divergent series this afternoon. I will post a review for that when I finish it. And I will start Watching The BBC Sherlock series within the next couple days. I will review each season as a watch it.
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Most Anticipated Movies of 2014 Part 2
This is my most anticipated movies of 2014 part 2. In part one I gave my numbers 10 through 6 picks. Now I'm going to do numbers 5 through one.
5. X Men Days of Future Past
I'm a little bit skeptical for this movie just because I feel it might be too cluttered. The cast from the first three X Men movies are going to be in it and the cast from X Men First Class is going to be in the movie as well. However I'm excited that Bryan Singer is back he's directed two good X Men movies in the past, and Peter Dinklage is going to be in it as well. This Movie comes out on May 23rd.
4. Interstellar
To be honest I don't know too much about this movie. Other than it might involve time travel, and it's directed by Christopher Nolan. For that reason alone I'm excited. The Dark Knight Trilogy and Inception are 4 of my favorite movies of all-time. Matthew McConaughey is going to be in the movie and he had a great year in 2013. I'm very excited for this movie, it comes out on November 7th.
3. Guardians of the Galaxy
I'm looking forward to this movie for a number of reasons. First of all it's a Marvel movie that's going to tie into The Avengers 2, and second of all I don't know anything about these characters. So this is a very intriguing movie for me. Also I'm positive there's going to be an Avengers 2 Easter egg in there there's always one in these Marvel movies. Guardians of the Galaxy comes out on August 1st.
2. Captain America The Winter Soldier
In the light of my number 3 pick, I'm going with Captain America The Winter Soldier for my number 2 pick. I got really excited when I saw the trailer for this movie especially the scene when he's fighting in the elevator. I've heard this movie is going to be like The Avengers 1.5 so I'm very excited to see this. This Movie comes out April 4th.
1. The Hobbit There and Back Again.
I don't think this comes as a surprise to my readers. I loved the first two Hobbit films, This one is going to continue the story of the dwarves fighting to get their home back. The Desolation of Smaug had a big cliff hanger ending. I can't wait to see this story wrap up. I have to wait all year for for this one it comes out on December 17th.
These are my 5 through one picks. I want to give a special shout out to Dawn of the Planet of the Apes it just missed my list that comes out on July 11th. As always thanks for reading.
5. X Men Days of Future Past
I'm a little bit skeptical for this movie just because I feel it might be too cluttered. The cast from the first three X Men movies are going to be in it and the cast from X Men First Class is going to be in the movie as well. However I'm excited that Bryan Singer is back he's directed two good X Men movies in the past, and Peter Dinklage is going to be in it as well. This Movie comes out on May 23rd.
4. Interstellar
To be honest I don't know too much about this movie. Other than it might involve time travel, and it's directed by Christopher Nolan. For that reason alone I'm excited. The Dark Knight Trilogy and Inception are 4 of my favorite movies of all-time. Matthew McConaughey is going to be in the movie and he had a great year in 2013. I'm very excited for this movie, it comes out on November 7th.
3. Guardians of the Galaxy
I'm looking forward to this movie for a number of reasons. First of all it's a Marvel movie that's going to tie into The Avengers 2, and second of all I don't know anything about these characters. So this is a very intriguing movie for me. Also I'm positive there's going to be an Avengers 2 Easter egg in there there's always one in these Marvel movies. Guardians of the Galaxy comes out on August 1st.
2. Captain America The Winter Soldier
In the light of my number 3 pick, I'm going with Captain America The Winter Soldier for my number 2 pick. I got really excited when I saw the trailer for this movie especially the scene when he's fighting in the elevator. I've heard this movie is going to be like The Avengers 1.5 so I'm very excited to see this. This Movie comes out April 4th.
1. The Hobbit There and Back Again.
I don't think this comes as a surprise to my readers. I loved the first two Hobbit films, This one is going to continue the story of the dwarves fighting to get their home back. The Desolation of Smaug had a big cliff hanger ending. I can't wait to see this story wrap up. I have to wait all year for for this one it comes out on December 17th.
These are my 5 through one picks. I want to give a special shout out to Dawn of the Planet of the Apes it just missed my list that comes out on July 11th. As always thanks for reading.
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