BLOG: Movies I would love to watch at TIFF 2017

Are you ready for TIFF 2017?

 

Ever since I moved to Toronto, I have been going to Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) almost religiously, increasing the number of movies I watched every year. In 2012, during my time in college, it was only 1 movie, “Laurence Anyways” by the Quebec director Xavier Dolan. In 2013, I watched 5 movies and experienced rush lines for the first time, lining up to see “The Fifth Estate” (which flopped but I still liked it), and then first disappointment as I missed out on the ticket for “August: Osage County”, and so on. In 2015, I beat my own record and watched 8 movies during the festival - for some of those movies I spent up to 4 hours in rush lines! It was intense! (You can read about my past experiences under Cinema tag.)

Unfortunately, last year I went on vacation right at the time of TIFF (which is beginning of September). I was very disappointed but seeing my family was more important. Unfortunately, this year I also going away.

So, to keep myself somewhat up-to-date with what is going on at the festival, I made a list of movies that would have been my initial list of movies to keep an eye out for. Obviously, it is not possible to watch so many during the festival (and still keep your full-time job), but it is always good to have 1-2 options to choose from for every day, as you never know if you are going to get a ticket or not.

I took the information about the movies from TIFF website, so please refer there for the schedule which will be available on August 22 at www.tiff.net.

A Fantastic Woman

Una Mujer Fantástica

Directed by Sebastián Lelio

Country: Chile

Duration: 103 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Special Presentations

Chilean director Sebastián Lelio follows his 2013 Festival hit Gloria with this drama about a young transgender woman struggling with both her own grief and societal prejudice after the death of her middle-aged lover.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/a-fantastic-woman/?v=a-fantastic-woman

Alias Grace

Directed by Mary Harron

Country: Canada, USA

Duration: 90 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Primetime

A layered historical drama based on of Margaret Atwood’s Giller Prize–winning novel about a poor Irish servant accused and convicted of murder, from director Mary Harron and screenwriter Sarah Polley.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/alias-grace/?v=alias-grace

Black Cop

Directed by Cory Bowles

Country: Canada

Duration: 91 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Discovery

A black police officer (Ronnie Rowe Jr.) seeks revenge after being egregiously profiled and assaulted by his colleagues, in this searing political satire by actor-director Cory Bowles (Trailer Park Boys).

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/black-cop/?v=black-cop

Breathe

Directed by Andy Serkis

Country: United Kingdom

Duration: 117 minutes

Year: 2016

TIFF 2017 Program: Gala Presentations

Actor Andy Serkis makes his directorial debut with the inspiring true love story of Robin and Diana Cavendish (Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy), an adventurous couple who refuse to give up in the face of a devastating disease.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/breathe/?v=breathe

Call Me By Your Name

Directed by Luca Guadagnino

Country: Italy, France

Duration: 132 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Special Presentations

The latest from Italian auteur Luca Guadagnino ( I Am Love, A Bigger Splash) explores the tender, tentative relationship that blooms over the course of one summer between a 17-year-old boy on the cusp of adulthood (Timothée Chalamet) and his father's research assistant (Armie Hammer).

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/call-me-by-your-name/?v=call-me-by-your-name

Dark River

Directed by Clio Barnard

Country: United Kingdom

Duration: 89 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Platform

Ruth Wilson stars in British filmmaker Clio Barnard’s atmospheric and layered drama about the old wounds and bitter new grievances that come to light when a woman returns home to settle the tenancy of her family’s Yorkshire farm.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/dark-river/?v=dark-river

Darkest Hour

Directed by Joe Wright

Country: United Kingdom

Duration: 114 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Gala Presentations

Gary Oldman steps into the imposing persona of Winston Churchill in Joe Wright’s (Pride and Prejudice, Atonement) period drama set in the early years of the Second World War, when Churchill’s rousing leadership inspired a nation.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/darkest-hour/?v=darkest-hour

Disobedience

Directed by Sebastián Lelio

Country: United Kingdom

Duration: 114 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Special Presentations

Sebastián Lelio (A Fantastic Woman, Gloria) directs Rachel Weisz and Rachel McAdams in this adaptation of Naomi Alderman’s novel about a woman who returns home to her orthodox Jewish community in London and rekindles a romance with her cousin’s wife.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/disobedience/?v=disobedience

Euphoria

Directed by Lisa Langseth

Country: Sweden, Germany

Duration: 104 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program:Platform

Swedish filmmaker Lisa Langseth directs her Hotell star Alicia Vikander and Eva Green (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children) in this story of two estranged sisters attempting a difficult and ominous reconciliation, with supporting performances from Charles Dance, Charlotte Rampling, Mark Stanley, and Adrian Lester.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/euphoria/?v=euphoria

For Nonna Anna

Directed by Luis De Filippis

Country: Canada

Duration: 13 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Short Cuts

In this raw and graceful testimony of intersectional womanhood, a trans girl has to care for her Italian grandmother. She assumes that her Nonna disapproves of her — but instead discovers a tender bond in their shared vulnerability.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/for-nonna-anna/?v=for-nonna-anna

Kings

Directed by Deniz Gamze Ergüven

Country: France, Belgium

Duration: 92 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Gala Presentations

In the English-language debut from writer-director Deniz Gamze Ergüven (Mustang), a recluse (Daniel Craig) helps a woman (Halle Berry) and her multiple children when riots erupt in Los Angeles following the 1992 acquittal of the policemen charged with assaulting Rodney King.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/kings/?v=kings

Mary Shelley

Directed by Haifaa Al Mansour

Country: Ireland, United Kingdom, Luxembourg, USA

Duration: 120 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Gala Presentations

Elle Fanning stars in this scintillating biopic of the Frankenstein author, chronicling her tempestuous marriage to dissolute poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and the fateful night at a Swiss chateau that inspired her most famous creation.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/mary-shelley/?v=mary-shelley

Pre-Drink

Directed by Marc-Antoine Lemire

Country: Canada

Duration: 23 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Short Cuts 

Alexe, a trans woman, and Carl, her gay best friend, disrupt the boundaries of their friendship when they decide to have sex for the first time — and raw emotional truths collide with illusions of breezy detachment at a time of transition.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/pre-drink/?v=pre-drink

Professor Marston & the Wonder Women

Directed by Angela Robinson

Country: USA

Duration: 108 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Special Presentations

Luke Evans (High-Rise, Beauty and the Beast), Rebecca Hall (Christine), and Bella Heathcote (Fifty Shades Darker) star in this biopic of William Moulton Marston, the American psychologist who put his progressive ideals about female liberation into practice by creating the DC superhero Wonder Woman and living in an "extended relationship" with his wife and another woman.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/professor-marston-and-the-wonder-women/?v=professor-marston-and-the-wonder-women

Submergence

Directed by Wim Wenders

Country:France, Germany, Spain

Duration: 112 minutes

Year: 2016

TIFF 2017 Program: Special Presentations

The new film from the great Wim Wenders (Pina) is a globe-trotting romance about a water engineer (James McAvoy) and a deep-sea researcher (Oscar winner Alicia Vikander) striving to reconnect although separated by oceans, continents, and civil war.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/submergence/?v=submergence

The Current War

Directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon

Country: USA

Duration: 107 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Special Presentations

Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) directs Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Shannon, Nicholas Hoult, Tom Holland, and Katherine Waterston in this account of the race for marketable electricity in the United States between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/the-current-war/?v=the-current-war

The Death of Stalin

Directed by Armando Iannucci

Country: France, United Kingdom, Belgium

Duration: 107 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Platform

Armando Iannucci (Veep) directs Jeffrey Tambor, Steve Buscemi, and Andrea Riseborough in this acerbic send-up of the Soviet Supremo and his band of scheming bootlicks.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/the-death-of-stalin/?v=the-death-of-stalin

The Upside

Directed by Neil Burger

Country: USA

Duration: 120 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Gala Presentations

Bryan Cranston and Kevin Hart star in this remake of the French hit The Intouchables, a dramatic buddy comedy about the unlikely friendship between a rich quadriplegic and his working-class caregiver.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/the-upside/?v=the-upside

Thelma

Directed by Joachim Trier

Country: Norway, Sweden, France, Denmark

Duration: 116 minutes

Year: 2017

TIFF 2017 Program: Special Presentations

Recently moved to Oslo to attend school, a young woman falls in love and discovers that she possesses terrifying powers, in this supernatural thriller from acclaimed director Joachim Trier (Louder Than Bombs).

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/thelma/?v=thelma

What Will People Say

Hva vil folk si

Directed by Iram Haq

Norway, Germany, Sweden106 minutes2017STCColourNorwegian, UrduWorld Premiere

TIFF 2017 Program: Platform

Nisha’s double life — obedient to her traditional Pakistani upbringing at home, typical Norwegian teenager to her friends — comes crashing down when her concerned parents kidnap her and send her to Pakistan, in Iram Haq’s personal, empathetic story of family, community, and culture.

http://www.tiff.net/tiff/what-will-people-say/?v=what-will-people-say

Let me know what you would like to see this year!

Book review: Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles, #3.5) by Marissa Meyer (audiobook)

 

"Fairest" is the book which is complementary to The Lunar Chronicles and should be read between "Cress", book three, and "Winter", the last book in the series. Initially, I even wanted to skip it, but since it was about Levana, the Queen of Luna, I figured, I might learn something new about her and Winter, who I already liked.

After ploughing through the six and a half hours of this audiobook, all of my thoughts can be summoned as “why on earth did Marissa Meyer write this book?”.

"Fairest" tells us the story of Levana, from her childhood and the tragic incident that happened (which was absolutely obvious and in no way as exciting of a mystery as one could think), to her quite obsessive fixation on Evret Hayle (which no sane person can ever call love), to her cruelty towards people whom she considered her family. Everything about Levana, with exception of her childhood, is despicable and did not make me sympathize with her any bit. If "Fairest" was supposed to be a redeeming story, in the same way as “Heartless” is, then it failed for me. "Fairest" did not make me like Levana or feel sorry for her. It only solidified my opinion of her being a cruel tyrant. I did sympathize with Levana when she was a child but it was very brief, and there is no redeeming what she did to Evret, Winter, Selene, and countless other characters in the books.

As a matter of fact, Levana in this book is extremely reminiscent of Catherine. To the point that it made me think that Levana was written as a doppelganger of Queen of Hearts. Naturally, Levana is a representation of all evil characters in fairy tales, the trope of “the evil stepmother”. And you know what? I was quite happy with hating Levana for being an evil queen. I did not need to know her sad story, because it didn’t change my perception of her at all.

To put it shortly, "Fairest| felt redundant and unnecessary for the narrative of The Lunar Chronicle series. Since it is positioned as a supplemental book between books three and four, it might be referenced later on in “Winter” (which would make sense), but for me it felt as a complete waste of time. I did like the characters of Evret and Channery, because they were new and unfamiliar to me, and we do get all of those things regarding mirrors and veils explained to us in this book. However, I don’t think, it should have been explained at all. The whole plot of "Fairest" could have been referenced as hints and snippets throughout the series without losing anything in the narrative. I would have even prefered it to be done this way as it would have made Levana’s character more mysterious and tragic. Having everything explained and described in so much detail made the plot too simplified, boring, and the book - way too long.

Alas, I wish I could give it higher rating, but as it stands, this book felt to me like a waste of time. I am glad I listened to it in audio, otherwise I would have DNF'ed it.

Narration: 4 stars

Plot: 1 star

Overall: 2.5 stars

Affiliated link:

Blog: “Earn It!” by Cinders McLeod - Book Launch @ Queen Books

You know, you are friend with right people when instead of going out for dinner, your friend invites you to a book launch party. So, this is how yesterday, August 15, I found myself at a new independent bookstore called “Queen Books”, located on (obviously) 914 Queen Street East. I had never heard of this bookstore before and learned that it just opened in April of this year. Their website is still under construction but you can check them out at queenbooks.ca. The book launch party in question was for the picture book “Earn It!”, the book one in a series called “The Moneybunnies”, by Cinders McLeod. This book is about Bun, a little bunny, who wants to be rich and famous (ain’t we all) but doesn’t understand that she needs to work hard for it. This series of books is intended to teach young children financial literacy, about spending and earning money, and why some families have more money than others.

I found the atmosphere at the party very welcoming and relaxing, even though I personally does not know Cinders, it was nice to see so many people come to celebrate the launch. The book was sold out, and everyone who was lucky to get a copy was able to get it signed by the author on spot.

(Unfortunately, I did not purchase a copy for myself, and I don’t have any readers of that age in my life to give it as a gift. Plus, the books were in high demand and I didn’t want to get ahead of someone who really wanted it. However, I do intend to pick it from the public library to read - they already have 32 copies in stock! I checked! But fear not - I did purchase another book from the book store. Just because I have no self-control.)

Here are some of the candid photos I took at the store.

“Earn It!” is both written and illustrated by Cinder McLeod and is published by Nancy Paulsen Books, the imprint of Penguin. It has 32 pages and is intended for children of 3-5 years old. It is currently available in hardback and ebook formats.

Cinders McLeod is represented by Samantha Haywood, Transatlantic Agency. Learn more about Cinders McLeod at www.cindersmcleod.com and cindersmcleod.tumblr.com and follow her on Twitter at @cindersmcleod.

Queen Books is scheduled to celebrate their official launch on August 26, Saturday.

Queen Books

queenbooks.ca

info@queenbooks.ca

416-778-5053

914 Queen St East

Toronto, On

Open 7 days a week, 10 am to 6 pm. Buy the book at Indigo:

Book review: "Girl Code" by Cara Alwill Leyba

Let me start the review of "Girl Code" by saying that I went into this book fully aware that it is not my type of a book. Over the years many people, mostly my mother and female friends, tried to push various self-development books on me. I detest them. There is nothing else that can put me quicker to sleep or annoy me to the point of throwing the book across the room (something that I more often than not imagine doing but have actually never done) than a book telling me who and what I should or should not be. Part of this is a bit irrational, as I do enjoy learning about other people’s experiences, especially if it is on a topic that I am interested in.

I learned about this book by Cara from her podcast named “Style Your Mind”, which was mentioned and recommended by the self-published author Kristen Martin (whom I got the privilege to finally meet in person at BookCon). Kristen is someone who I admire and look up to when it comes to organization and being a self-published author - she has a youtube channel and her vlogs are my favourite videos! She mentioned Cara’s podcast, and even though, like I said before, I am not into this type of thing, I went to iTunes and listened to several of her episodes in quick succession. (I was deep cleaning my apartment and her podcasts made this tedious task more bearable.)

I liked Cara’s energy and her message about empowering women. I liked what she was saying about her life, how she never had a privileged childhood, but she crafted her life to where she is right now. I liked her way to putting ideas into simple statements. Cara is a life coach and a self-published author, and only recently her self-published novel, "Girl Code", was reprinted by the traditional publisher. I decided to give that book a go, since it was the only novel available at my library.

"Girl Code" is extremely short and extremely easy to read. In fact, I found it so simplistic, that I almost felt as if I was reading the scripts to Cara’s podcast. It is not necessarily a bad thing. But for someone like me, who relishes reading complicated prose, it was a bit too simplified at times.

Besides her own advices and coaching, Cara’s book also has interviews with other empowering women, interspersed by quotes by famous women. I liked some of them, others I found a bit ‘meh’.

Overall, I think this book is great for picking you up if you are in some sort of a funk, but I would not call it ‘groundbreaking’ or ‘empowering’ or ‘inspiring’, and definitely the rating of over 4 stars on GoodReads is a bit surprising (I feel as if it is more of a reflection on Cara’s personality than her writing ability). It was not bad, but there were a lot of things that I could not, personally, relate to. And it is fine. If you are interested in being an entrepreneur or if you want to hear from women who came through a lot of hardships but stayed true to themselves - give this one a try. It is a very short book and I read half of it while getting my pedicure done (which was the appropriate amount of attention this book required from me).

Personal rating: 3 stars

Affiliated link:

Take me away

Pretty in green

Theatre Blog: The plays I want to see (Fall 2017 - Spring 2018) - National Theatre Live

So far, this year has been absolutely great on all National Theatre Live broadcasts. There were a lot of plays that I loved and would happily watch more than once. I know that I am a bit behind on reviews here, but since I found information about upcoming broadcasts at Cineplex website, I just had to share!

Yerma - National Theatre Live

September 21, 2017 | 2h 00m

GENRE: Drama, Stage

DIRECTOR: Simon Stone (Director), Federico García Lorca (Playwright)

CAST: Billie Piper

SYNOPSIS

The incredible Billie Piper (Penny Dreadful, Great Britain) returns in her award-winning role. A young woman is driven to the unthinkable by her desperate desire to have a child in Simon Stone’s radical production of Lorca’s achingly powerful masterpiece. The unmissable theatre phenomenon sold out at the Young Vic and critics call it ‘an extraordinary theatrical triumph’ (The Times) and ‘stunning, searing, unmissable’ (Mail on Sunday). Billie Piper’s lead performance is described as ‘spellbinding’ (The Evening Standard), ‘astonishing’ (iNews) and ‘devastatingly powerful’ (The Daily Telegraph). Set in contemporary London, Piper’s portrayal of a woman in her thirties desperate to conceive builds with elemental force to a staggering, shocking, climax. Please note that this broadcast does not have an interval.

Links:

• https://www.cineplex.com/Movie/yerma-national-theatre-live

My comments: I have already purchased the ticket for this broadcast. I am very excited to see Billie Piper on stage, whom I really liked in Doctor Who. And this time I swear, I will read the play before watching it.

Follies - National Theatre Live

November 16, 2017 | 3h 30m

GENRE: Musical, Stage

DIRECTOR: Dominic Cooke

CAST: Imelda Staunton, Tracie Bennett, Janie Dee

SYNOPSIS:

Stephen Sondheim’s legendary musical is staged for the first time at the National Theatre and broadcast live to cinemas. New York, 1971. There’s a party on the stage of the Weismann Theatre. Tomorrow the iconic building will be demolished. Thirty years after their final performance, the Follies girls gather to have a few drinks, sing a few songs and lie about themselves. Tracie Bennett, Janie Dee and Imelda Staunton play the magnificent Follies in this dazzling new production. Featuring a cast of 37 and an orchestra of 21, it’s directed by Dominic Cooke (The Comedy of Errors). Winner of Academy, Tony, Grammy and Olivier awards, Sondheim’s previous work includes A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd and Sunday in the Park with George.

Links:

• https://www.cineplex.com/Movie/follies-national-theatre-live
• http://ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/63102-follies

My comments: I am not familiar with this story but I am excited to see Imelda Staunton on stage again. After watching “Who is afraid of Virginia Woolf?” (read my review here), I developed a new level of appreciation for Imelda. She was terrific in that play, so I can’t wait to see this production.

Young Marx - National Theatre Live

December 7, 2017 | 3h 40m

GENRE: Comedy, Stage

DIRECTOR: Nicholas Hytner

CAST: Rory Kinnear, Oliver Chris

SYNOPSIS:

Rory Kinnear (The Threepenny Opera, Penny Dreadful, Othello) is Marx and Oliver Chris (Twelfth Night, Green Wing) is Engels, in this new comedy written by Richard Bean and Clive Coleman. Broadcast live from The Bridge Theatre, London, the production is directed by Nicholas Hytner and reunites the creative team behind Broadway and West End hit comedy One Man, Two Guvnors. 1850, and Europe’s most feared terrorist is hiding in Dean Street, Soho. Broke, restless and horny, the thirty-two-year-old revolutionary is a frothing combination of intellectual brilliance, invective, satiric wit, and child-like emotional illiteracy. Creditors, spies, rival revolutionary factions and prospective seducers of his beautiful wife all circle like vultures. His writing blocked, his marriage dying, his friend Engels in despair at his wasted genius, his only hope is a job on the railway. But there’s still no one in the capital who can show you a better night on the piss than Karl Heinrich Marx.

Links:

• https://www.cineplex.com/Movie/young-marx-national-theatre-live
• http://ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/ntlout25-young-marx

My comments: Can’t say I am very interested in the story of Karl Marx, but Rory Kinnear is a terrific actor. I have seen him in The Threepenny Opera and Othello (both by NT) and I know that this is going to be a great play!

Hamlet - National Theatre Live ENCORE

March 1, 2018 | 3h 25m

Links:

• https://www.cineplex.com/Movie/hamlet-national-theatre-live-encore
• http://ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/ntlout27-hamlet

My comments: Hamlet with Benedict Cumberbatch - what more can I say? I have seen it twice already but will watch it again, and again, and again.

Julius Caesar - National Theatre Live

March 22, 2018 | 3h 00m

GENRE: Stage

DIRECTOR: Nicholas Hytner

CAST: Ben Whishaw, Michelle Fairley, David Calder, David Morrissey

SYNOPSIS:

Ben Whishaw (The Danish Girl, Skyfall, Hamlet) and Michelle Fairley (Fortitude, Game of Thrones) play Brutus and Cassius, David Calder (The Lost City of Z, The Hatton Garden Job) plays Caesar and David Morrissey (The Missing, Hangmen, The Walking Dead) is Mark Antony. Broadcast live from The Bridge Theatre, London. Caesar returns in triumph to Rome and the people pour out of their homes to celebrate. Alarmed by the autocrat’s popularity, the educated élite conspire to bring him down. After his assassination, civil war erupts on the streets of the capital. Nicholas Hytner’s production will thrust the audience into the street party that greets Caesar’s return, the congress that witnesses his murder, the rally that assembles for his funeral and the chaos that explodes in its wake.

Links:

• https://www.cineplex.com/Movie/julius-caesar-national-theatre-live
• http://ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/ntlout26-julius-caesar

My comments: Ben Whishaw on stage. What else do you need? I fell in love with Ben as Freddie Lyon in the British TV series ‘The Hour’. I believe, it will be the first time I see him on stage, and I can not wait!

This is all that has been announced for the broadcast in foreseeable future. As always, keep an eye on Cineplex and NTLive.com websites for more information. (And, no, I have no affiliation with either companies - I am just an avid theatre goer ♥).

Check out my play reviews here.

Book review: Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3) by Marissa Meyer (audiobook)

 

After finishing Cinder and Scarlet in a quick succession, I was impatient to start Cress. The beginning of Cress was everything I wanted and expected - it was dramatic, fast paced and worked perfectly well.

Then came the slump. I listened to about one third of the audiobook and started to lose interest in what was happening. Mainly, it had to do with a very long and predictable journey through desert - everything that happened there, including the following kidnapping, I was able to foresee a mile away, which left me feeling ‘meh’ and reluctant to continue. I found myself turning to this audiobook less and less, and eventually had to have a little break.

I did continue with it, and once all of our character finally assembled in one place, the pace picked up again. I did, however, find some of the revelations very obvious, which saddened me. Although I find the narration pleasant and the storyline entertaining enough, it is not as engaging as I would have liked. At times, the series has a bit too much teenager’y drama and soap opera for me.

I do what to remark on the fact that although almost all characters went through some character development in this book, I still can not figure out Carswell Thorne. He was introduced at the end of “Cinder”/beginning of “Scarlet” and was depicted as a completely fluke, a self-absorbed moron and a failed conman, whose mind seemed to be only occupied by ladies and maintaining his good looks. I disliked him a lot at that point. Throughout “Scarlet” Thorne was developing into a better fleshed out character, but I still was not sold on his “a conman with a heart of gold” persona. I found it difficult to believe that Cress would fall for Thorne, when there was clearly nothing heroic about him.

By the end of “Cress”, however, Thorne is turning into a real hero. He is not afraid to admit to his less favourable deeds to Cress, and he is hiding less and less behind his jokes and over-exuberant confidence. Cress is slowly growing into a strong character in this story, perhaps, less than Cinder and Scarlet, but she is a real team member by the end of this novel. She saved the day more than once in this book, which I absolutely loved.

The only character, who has not failed to annoy me in every single book, is Emperor Kai. Not only he is willing to be a sacrifice lamb and go through the marriage with Levana, but he seems to completely incompetent in everything that he does. He is praised for his diplomatic skills, while he failed to secure future peace for his nation. His decision to marry Levana is not only the suicide but also a definite disaster for his nation, if he is, indeed, killed after Levana is crowned as the empress. It is a ridiculous decision, which the author is trying to portray as this big and important sacrifice, but it is just plain stupid. He is choosing to prolong the suffering of his nation (and his own) by implementing this short-term solution. Kai is completely oblivious to everything that is happening in the palace - he is not fully aware of the research, he doesn’t know that there are tunnels under the palace, etc. He seems to be surprised by the most obvious decisions and is fully dependant on his advisor Torin. I hope that he will undergo at least some character development in “Winter” as for now I don’t understand what Cinder (and Iko) see in him as he is not the Prince Charming I expected in this series. (I love the fact that all the female character in the series are badass in their own ways, but Kai just annoys me.)

I feel that this book could have worked really well with at least 50 pages cut out. It is long and the middle of the book is rather slow. The pace did pick up at the end, although I found the ending of “Cress” to be less dramatic and intense than the ending of the second book in the series.

I hoped that I would give this book a higher rating than books one and two, but alas. It is a good series, but so far it has failed to enamour me to it to give it anything higher than 3 stars.

Narration: 4 stars

Plot: 3 stars

Overall: 3 stars

Book review: Shadow and Bone (The Grisha, #1) by Leigh Bardugo

  As always I am late to the party. I mean, everyone has already read the Six of Crows duology a year ago which followed The Grisha trilogy, and here I am - finally reading the first book in the trilogy. But better late than never, huh?

Following my rather mixed feelings in regards of  “Crown’s Game” by Evelyn Skye (I was excited to read the book set in Imperial Russia but also found all language fumbles and misconceptions rather frustrating - neither of which prevented me from buying the book or its sequel, by the way), I became increasingly anxious over starting The Grisha trilogy. I heard good things, but not amazing things. People were praising Bardugo for setting her fantasy in Russia, but at the same time they were not calling it an amazing book. Even the title of the series made me feel apprehensive - who names the series a short version of the name Gregory which, by the way, is the name for magicians of that world.

Errr, what?

Not to mention, the types of the order - Corporalki, Etherealki and Materialki - that make even less sense and only vaguely resemble Russian language. (Stapling ‘ki’ ending to an English word is not how you go about it. It just makes it sound derogatory.)

But at some point I was like - enough is enough, time to read the series! If I hate it, then I will hate it, but if I don’t - then I want to be able to say so.

Long story short: I did NOT hate it. But I was not instantly enamoured either.

Linguistic fumbles aside (and, yes, I did find mistakes in the language, which once again made me what to pull at my hair and yell at non-native speakers incorporating words in foreign languages to seek reliable native speaking translators), you can definitely tell that “Shadow and Bone” is Bardugo’s debut novel. It is not a necessarily bad novel, but it is cliched and raw in some parts, although I did enjoy the fact that it is a very fast paced book. You get thrown into the midst of action almost from the very beginning, which is great and saves you from paying too much attention to certain plot holes.

I liked all main characters, although the trope of “the chosen one” is getting pretty old. The Darkling is, probably, my most favourite character, in spite of how cliched of a dark brooding but incredibly attractive villain he is. I loved the depictions of the Shadow Fold and Unsee and volcra.

While reading the book, I felt compelled to stop treating this world as an actual historical depiction of Russian Empire in 1800s but treat it as a sort of resembling reality fantasy world. I am thankful that unlike Skye, Bardugo did not claim any historical prowess when it comes to world building. I would not have handled that well. The world of Ravka (another word that makes me cringe internally) is as historically accurate as the animated movie ‘Anastasia’ (which is a great movie but is also so Hollywood-like that it is almost offensive that it was so well received and is still loved by many, considering how far fetched it is from actual events). Since “Shadow and Bone” does not claim to be set in Russia, I am (almost) willing to overlook poorly constructed sentences in Russian (please, do not use Google Translate when you write books), misconception that kvas is a heavy alcoholic drink (it is lighter than beer and I can’t imagine anyone getting drunk on it!) or that everyone eats buckwheat and marinated herring for breakfast (the herring is delicious, by the way) or that the name of the main protagonist, Alina Starkov, sounds like an immigrant Russian name in USA (because since Alina is female, her last name should have been Starkova). As you understand, I can continue with this list.

I did enjoy reading the novel, when I was not cringing or rolling my eyes. It is better than some debut novels, I have read. It is not perfect - not even close, but it is book one in the trilogy, and I have heard from several people that Bardugo’s writing does get better in later books. Which gives me hope.

Overall, the book has a distinctive Hollywood flair to it. The alluring boys are too alluring, the stubborn main characters are too stubborn, and the creepy villains are too creepy. You know what I mean. But the pace of the narrative was enough to keep me hooked. I flew through the book that turned out to be shorter and a much quicker read than I expected. So, I have to give Leigh that. She managed to keep me entertained in spite of everything.

I can not wait to read the second novel. I hope it does get better.

Personal rating: 3 stars

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July 30 - Apple Photo Walks

Today my friend Anya and I went to one of Apple’s Photo Walks. It is an hour and a half free session of walking around the neighbourhood (in our case - Old and New City Halls) with an Apple rep, talking about basic iPhone camera features, exposure, light, contrast, etc. It is great for newbies and those who don’t use their iPhone’s camera much but want to learn. I can’t say that I personally learned something new from it, but I loved walking around with a group of people and intentionally trying to be creative and look at ordinary things at different angles. It would have been even better if it weren’t so blazingly hot!

Here are some  of the photos from that walk. All taken by iPhone 6S, standard Camera app, no editing apps.