I read the book this was based on a long time ago. So long ago that I don’t really remember the details. But I do remember thinking that it wasn’t the most film-friendly of novels when I heard that it was to be adapted. But of course neither was The Lord of the Rings and look how well Jackson et al did there. This, however, is a very different kettle of fish from LOTR
Mary Eleanor Bowes was born in 1749. Her father was extremely wealthy and, unusually for the time, had her well educated. A most eligible young woman, not least because she was the richest heiress in C18th Britain. Her first wedding was nothing unusual for the time. Pretty loveless and to an older man it wasn’t a romantic love match. Her second, to a dashing young soldier, was. Mary Eleanor probably hadn’t intended to marry Andrew Robinson Stoney, but upon hearing that he had fought a duel for her honour and was laying on his deathbed wishing for nothing but her hand in marriage… well, who could resist that romance!
IMDb has this classified as a Drama and a Comedy. I’m not sure I see either. I know I didn’t enjoy it, so that rules it out as a comedy. I suppose, technically it is a work designed to be performed by actors so it qualifies as drama, but if it were up to me this would be firmly placed within the “angsty whiney shite were nothing happens” genre.
Ever since I saw the trailer for this with the wonderful character design I wanted to see it. Plus, Wonderland as seen through Tim Burton’s eyes! And Johnny Depp! And the fact that it is 3D. Of course with all those positives there was always the chance for expectations being far too high and the film itself being a disappointment.
This isn’t really an adaptation of Carroll’s book, instead we have a 19 year old Alice, and all the characters in Wonderland, or the Underland, are wondering if she is the right Alice, especially as she doesn’t seem to remember being there before. They need Alice to be their champion and fight the jabberwock and so defeat the Red Queen. But if she isn’t the Real Alice can she do it?
The plot of Living with the dead revolves around the character of Robyn; recently widowed she has moved to LA and taken a job in PR with Portia Kane, a Paris Hilton-type celebrity. Or wannabe celebrity. But when Portia is murdered Robyn finds herself the main suspect and in her confusion makes a break for it. She is helped out by her best friend, Hope Adams, and her boyfriend, Karl Marstsen.
It has been ages since I’ve read any of Armstrong’s books. I think I sorta faded away from them with Broken. But that was way back in 2006, she’s had four more books in the series out since then, as well as some YA books in the ‘verse, not to mention the ooodles of short stories. And while these books are pretty far removed from the cannon there is something so enjoyable about them.
So y’all know that I luuurve James Purefoy, mainly because he was so great as Mark Anthony in Rome, but also so adorable in A Knight’s Tale so of course I was predisposed to like this. Then again I wasn’t too impressed with Vanity Fair so it doesn’t always follow that actors I like = good films.
Author: Mary Russell
If you’ve read my reviews of the other books in this series you’ll already know that I really love them. If you haven’t here’s a quick recap; Sherlock Holmes, a real historical figure retired to Sussex in order to tend to his bees. While there he met Mary Russell; a somewhat moody, if quite brilliant, teenager and took her under his wing. She became his apprentice and later his wife. Errr, spoiler alert! In this, the fourth in the series, Sherlock sends Russell a telegram summoning her to Dartmoor and the moor that was the setting for The Hound of the Baskervilles. There are reports of another ghostly beast roaming the countryside and an old friend of Holmes would like him to investigate. Especially when a man is found dead on the moor.
I really did want to enjoy this film. It is a werewolf film after all, and I am a fan, plus Benicio Del Toro has something about him that I usually enjoy. Unfortunately there is very little by way of storyline in this film. And even less of characters. I mean, why make a film about a character no one cares about? When your central character leaves me meh-d out, well, your film really isn’t going to grab my attention now is it?
The more I read of this series the more I come to love the characters, and indeed the whole set-up. Mary Russell is such a believable character, and King’s Holmes is just perfect.
The mystery at the heart of this novel concerns the death of Dorothy Ruskin. An archaeologist working in Jerusalem, she met up with Russell and Holmes when they travelled the area back in book one. In this book she comes to visit them, bringing with her an exquisite wooden box which contains a parchment on which is written a letter, from Mary of Magdala to her sister. Was it really written by the infamous Mary Magdalen? And was the car accident that killed her really an accident?
I really liked the opening chapter of this book. De Lint creates a wonderful picture of Jacky Rowan. Recently dumped for being too uninteresting she has spent the night drinking her sorrows away. But on her way home she comes across a strange scene; a gang of bikers hunting down a little man. But when she investigates further there is no trace of it ever having happened, apart from the man’s red cap that she discovered on the ground.
Author: Laurie R. King
A Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes mystery #2
I’ve enjoyed the other books in this series that I’ve read, but this one I loved. Totally loved it.
It is 1921 and our hero, Mary Russell, has finished her undergraduate course at Oxford. She is also about to come into her inheritance. Her life on the brink of being totally her own. No longer a ward of her aunt’s; she will be able to live as she chooses. But how will she choose, and what does she want to do with her life? Will she pursue an academic career with her interest in theology? Or does her future lie with Holmes and the life of a detective?