Movie Review--CITY OF BONES

***CONTAINS BOOK AND MOVIE SPOILERS***

Hey folks,

I actually saw CITY OF BONES in theatres a couple of weeks ago. I made a few notes and then life. Now, here we are.

I’ll start with what worked. This was a decent book-to-movie translation. The actors were good for the characters (Simon in particular). We got to see more of Jocelyn in the beginning, which I loved. I pictured her just lying down and giving up in the book, and that bugged me. The movie shows her kicking butt.

I also liked that Jace was toned down. There were times in the book he really came off as a jerk. And I don’t mean a jerk to the main characters, I mean an overall jerk. He treated people he didn’t even know like crap. His undying love for Clary was also lessened, and I thought it worked better.

The humor translated beautifully. I particularly loved the image of Clary shoving her notebook at no one at the beginning. I recognized lines from the book, and they were delivered as I imagined they would be.

The pacing was good. The action kept moving. The tension was high. The friends I went with who hadn’t read the book said some plot points were kind of obvious, but hey, it happens.

K, now I’m going to say what didn’t work so well. Stay with me if you’d like.

One of the major complaints I heard going into the movie was that it felt like the entire movie crammed into the novel. I kind of have to agree with that. With a few exceptions, very little was left out. Having read the book, I was able to keep up. The overall reaction from my friends who hadn’t read it was “That was a pretty good movie.” *Ask tons of questions* Good movie adaptation. Clearest book-to-movie adaptation, maybe not.

Shadowhunters with British accents. Didn’t see that coming and not sure how I feel about it. It worked for Jace and the older generation, but it completely destroyed Isabel’s character for me. That’s a personal preference thing, though.

The vampires—in the book, Simon turns into a rat, and the vampires steal him. Magnus says this is probably to spite the shadowhunters (which makes sense given the animosity between shadowhunters and downworlders), and Jace and Clary go to save Rat-Simon. Cool.

In the movie, the vampires steal a human Simon? And hang him up-side-down in an elevator shaft? When Jace, Clary, and company find him, Simon tells them the vampires want the Mortal Cup. Why would the vampires want the Mortal Cup? Unless they want to destroy it, but that was never addressed. So I was confused.

The portal—in the book it was at Madam Dorothea’s. In the movie it was at the institute. K, not a big deal. It just changed when/how certain things happened—like Clary porting to Luke’s.

My bigger issue with the portal was its history. It apparently sprouted out of nothing (I recall Jace saying it was rumored that the Institute was the first building in New York because it was built around the portal.) I can get behind that. What I had more trouble with was Jace saying “No one knows how to destroy it.” Then it mystically blows up when Valentine goes through it at the end. Well, that solves that problem?

Side note—Valentine going through the portal. In the book he went by choice. In the movie, Clary punches him. Ok, girl power. But Valentine is a trained shadowhunter, and Clary is able to get the jump on him because he is too busy staring at the shiny, floating ball of light Jace tossed at him? Err…ok?

And now to my biggest issue—Jace and Clary are siblings. In the book, this made sense in how it was presented. Clary, Luke, and Luke’s people rush to the showdown at the O.K. corral (which, in the book, was at some abandoned hospital, not the institute). Clary rushes through the building until she finds Jace. Jace is clothed and calm. When Clary says they need to get out of there because of Valentine, Jace tells her it’s okay because…his father is there. (Cue Valentine’s entrance). Clary is all like “no, that’s Valentine.” Jace is all like “no, that’s Michael Wayland.” Valentine is all like “I pretended to be Michael Wayland, but Jace really is my son. And, Clary, you are my daughter.” Not the happiest family reunion, but it makes sense.

The movie…not so much. Jace finds Valentine in the institute and does his man-challenge thing. Valentine tells Jace he’s his father. Jace says ‘no you are not, Darth Valentine,’ and they beat each other up. Meanwhile, Clary is working her way back to the Institute. She gets there, finds Valentine and Jace, and is told (rather abruptly) that she is Jace’s sister…by Jace.

What happened to Darth Valentine? And why did Jace suddenly believe Valentine was his father after not even recognizing the guy? And why does Clary believe it too? In the book, this scene was plausible. In the movie, it, well, wasn’t.

Side note: Did Jace never see a picture of the original Circle and have Valentine pointed out to him? Neither the book nor movie addresses this.

One final thing. I saw a comment on a review of this movie that said the person who decided to put the song in the greenhouse scene needed a special kind of Hell. Whoever you are, commenter, I agree with you.

Wrap-up—I enjoyed the movie. It kept me interested. Some things could have been handled better, but for what movie is that not the case?

Lastly, a special thank-you to one of the friends I saw this with for entertaining me by “shouting” (movie theatre style) out similarities to other movies as he noticed them.

Thanks for reading.

Mary
@desantismt on Twitter

Book Tour--SPECIAL OFFERS & SPECIAL REWARDS

SPECIAL OFFERS & SPECIAL REWARDS by M.L. Ryan
Books 1 & 2 in the paranormal romance/urban fantasy Coursodon Dimension Series

SPECIAL OFFERS

BLURB
Meet Hailey - possessed by an otherworldly being who was trapped in her Kindle.

Hailey Parrish was quick-witted, irreverent, and hadn’t had a date in three years. She only wanted an eBook reader because her collection of paperbacks threatened to take over her small living space. Little did she know that the "special offers" that prompted the purchase included much more than a reduced price in exchange for a few ads. The device came pre-loaded with the essence of Sebastian Kess, an erudite womanizer with magical abilities from a parallel dimension. When she inadvertently releases him and he inhabits her body, she finally has a man inside her, just not in the way she imagined. And soon her predicament introduces her to yet another supernatural, the handsome could-be-the-man-of-her-dreams Alex Sunderland. Can Alex and Hailey find a way to return Sebastian to his own body, stay one step ahead of the criminals who want to keep him where he is, and not lose their sense of humor?

Special Offers, the first book of the Coursodon Dimension Series, combines paranormal romance, urban fantasy, a bit of science fiction and a healthy dose of quirky humor.

EXCERPT
As I lay in the darkness, it occurred to me that I must be the most boring single 30 year-old ever. I didn’t go out much, I ate crappy food. I couldn’t even remember the score of the games I just watched.

This was not how I had imagined myself at this point in my life. Had my marriage not crashed and burned, we probably would have a baby by now. Yeah, and I would still be married to an asstard. He probably would have spawned asstardlets. I just wanted to feel like my life was going somewhere, like I was accomplishing something. I rolled over on my side and vowed to try to get myself together and move forward.

When I finally fell asleep, I dreamt I went on my first post-divorce date. The guy took me to a fancy restaurant, ordered lots of food and expensive wine and then ditched me for the voluptuous hostess. I was presented with the check but lacked any means of paying it. After negotiating a payment plan with the restaurant owner, which involved allowing him to indulge his foot fetish with my pinkie toes and some flavored whipped cream, I left the place and got into my car, which was really weird, because my date drove.

There in the parking lot were dine-and-dash and the hostess, groping each other with utter abandon. I revved up the engine, threw the car into drive and peeled out towards them. The headlights illuminated their stunned faces as I spun the car sharply, rolled down the window and chucked a lit Molotov cocktail - made from the empty wine bottle from dinner - at them and sped off humming the theme to “The Lion King.”

I woke up thinking I must be making progress. Usually in my dreams I ran them over after I set them on fire.

SPECIAL REWARDS

ABOUT M.L.

M.L. Ryan is a profes¬sional woman – not that she gave up her amateur status, but rather that she is over-educated with a job in which she spends a lot of time writing dry, science non-Fiction. In an effort to strength¬en the less logi¬cal side of her brain, she decided to write some of the many stories rolling around in her head. She lives in Tucson, AZ with her husband, son, four cats, two dogs and an adopt¬ed Desert Tortoise.

Visit M.L.’s website. Check out her blog. Like her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter @MLRyan1, and connect with her on Goodreads.

Buy SPECIAL OFFERS

Ebook
-Amazon
-B&N
-Smashwords
-Itunes
-Kobo

Trade paperback
-Amazon
-Create Space

Buy SPECIAL REWARDS

Ebook
-Amazon
-B&N
-Itunes
-Smashwords
-Kobo

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Hey readers,

Improvement is not running them over. Hee lols

Follow the rest of this tour here.

And don’t forget to comment for a chance at a prize.

M.L. will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

My Characters Ran off with My Scene!

WANTED: Run-Away Characters

Last seen on the corner of Chapter 12 Street and Ynatsaf Ave

Character 1: female, dark brown hair, about 5 ft 6. Probably in military uniform. Most likely unconcerned.
Character 2: male, blonde hair, about 5 ft 10. Probably in military uniform and may be blushing furiously.
Character 3: male, sand-brown hair, about 6ft. Royal bearing and sporting one massive temper.

They ran off with my scene! It was going fine and then the girl and the blonde were arguing, and the other guy was standing in the trees, watching and fuming. And…who put them in charge? I want my scene back!

Please, if you see them or know anything, report it.

Phone (toll free): 1-800-GET-THEM

Many thanks!

Book Tour--SECRETS OF A DANGEROUS WOMAN

SECRETS OF A DANGEROUS WOMAN by P.M. Terrell
A suspense novel with a touch of romance and paranormal

BLURB
Dylan Maguire is back and in his first mission with the CIA he must interrogate a recently captured Brenda Carnegie. But when she escapes again, it’s obvious that she’s had help from within the CIA’s own ranks. With Vicki Boyd’s psychic help, he must locate her again—and find out why some in the highest levels of government want her dead while others will risk everything to help her. And when he finds out her true identity, his mission has just become very personal.

EXCERPT
Dylan placed a hand on each knee and pulled her legs apart to reveal a slim, homemade knife holder wrapped around her thigh. Inside the sheath had been a serrated nylon composite knife, but one of the rivets had popped loose, allowing the knife to come through the sheath. Now he could clearly see nearly two inches of the blade embedded just underneath her skin.

He looked back at Brenda’s face. She’d grown pale and was watching him.

“You’re supposed to wear these just below the knee,” he said calmly.

“Pull my pants down a little bit further.”

He complied, revealing two empty knife holders, one at the top of each calf.

“They took the knives,” she said.

He turned his attention back to the knife embedded in her. “I don’t normally see a nylon knife worn like this.”

“It won’t set off metal detectors.”

“How long has it been like this?” he asked.

“Four days.”

“And you’ve been sittin’ here like this ever since?”

“Well, not here,” she said. Beads of perspiration had popped out across her arched brow.

He looked at the table and then back at her. He glanced toward the door but it didn’t open and Sam didn’t join him. “I’m goin’ to cuff you to that table there. You’re goin’ to lie there and I’m goin’ to pull this thin’ out o’ you. It’s not goin’ to be pleasin’ and I can’t give you anythin’ for the pain.”

She nodded.

“Think you can handle that?”

“I can handle anything you want to throw my way,” she said.

He retrieved the handcuff keys and when he returned to her chair, he leaned over her so his face was just inches from hers. “You can’t escape this room,” he said. “You and I both know there’s only one way out.” He nodded toward the door. “And we both know we’re bein’ watched. And once I take these cuffs off your legs, if you try to kick me, I can’t help you. And I guarantee the next person through that door won’t be helpin’ you, either. You’ll just make thin’s worse for yourself.”

She looked at him blankly.

“Are you understandin’ me, Woman?”

AN INTERVIEW WITH P.M.
-What book and/or experience made you want to be a writer?

In 1967, my father was transferred from New Jersey to the Mississippi Delta. His job as an FBI Agent was to break up the KKK and help to bring things under control in a volatile region during one of this country’s most unsettling periods. It was obvious that no one wanted us there. My school principal saw that I was ostracized and alone and suggested that I write. She gave me the direction I needed in my life, which led to a lifelong love of writing.

-What genre(s) do you write?

My earliest published work was in non-fiction, writing computer software how-to books. My passion, however, is in writing fiction. Nearly twenty years after my first non-fiction was published, my first suspense/thriller was released. To date, I’ve had four computer books published, one how-to book for authors, eight contemporary suspense and two historical suspense. Two more contemporary works are scheduled for release in the next twelve months.

-For aspiring writers, any tips?

Write what you love and the passion will be reflected in your words. Then remove your ego from what you’ve written.

-What’s your favorite book/genre to read?

I love time travel and romantic books set in Ireland or Scotland. My ancestors on my father’s side were Scot-Irish and on my mother’s side they were Irish, so when I read books set in those countries I always feel closer to my own roots.

-What’s your favorite thing you’ve ever written?

It’s a tie. Dylan’s Song is set in Ireland when Dylan Maguire must travel to his homeland on a CIA mission. And The Tempest Murders (which hasn’t yet been released) also has an Irish backdrop against one of the worst storms in Irish history. I loved both male leads – Dylan Maguire and Ryan O’Clery – as well as the Irish setting.

ABOUT P.M.

P.M. Terrell is the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 18 books in 4 genres. A full-time author since 2002, she previously opened and operated two computer companies in the Washington, DC area. Her specialties were in the areas of computer crime and computer intelligence and her clients included the Secret Service, CIA and Department of Defense as well as local law enforcement. Computer and spy technology are two themes that recur throughout her books. She is the co-founder of The Book 'Em Foundation, whose mission is to raise awareness of the link between high illiteracy rates and high crime rates. And she founded the annual Book 'Em North Carolina Writers Conference and Book Fair which takes place each February.

More about P.M. Terrell and her books can be found at her website. Also visit her blogs: P.M. Terrell and Vicki’s Angelfish. Follow P.M. on Twitter @pmterrell and like her Facebook author page.

Buy Links
-Amazon paperback
-Smashwords
-B&N Nook
-ITunes

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Hey readers,

Now there’s the making of some intense tension.

Follow the rest of the tour here.

And don’t forget to comment for a chance at a prize.

P.M. will be awarding a Celtic Open Knot necklace to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

Book Tour--WRAGE

WRAGE by Joseph Spencer
An occult crime thriller

AN INTERVIEW WITH JOSEPH
-What book and/or experience made you want to be a writer?

I think a number of books including Count of Monte Cristo, Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Red Dragon, Silence of the Lambs, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes’ stories inspired me, but it was when my then girlfriend and now wife got me hooked on watching the TV show Castle that I thought why not me? I’d worked as a newspaper reporter for 10 years before switching careers, and I wanted to feel the creative outlet I had with writing again.

-What genre do you write?

I write occult crime thrillers. It’s funny after some of my friends and family read my debut Grim they said they were impressed with my work before adding that they were scared for my wife’s safety. I write dark stuff. Many people have reviewed it as not for the faint of heart.

-WRAGE

Sometimes the toughest fight lies within yourself.

As more dark secrets come to light, the battle for souls pushes Prairieville to the brink of war in the living and supernatural realms.

Jeff Wrage swears a blood oath to Abaddon, the supernatural avenger of murder victims, to hunt the crooked cop who butchered his wife. Jeff wonders whether he can be the executioner Abaddon requires. Their pact throws the supernatural realm in chaos and threatens to trigger an apocalyptic fight for control of the afterlife between the Sons of Darkness and Sons of Light foretold in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Orlando Marino sees the death of Cyrus Black as his opportunity to restore the Marino family's stronghold in Prairieville’s organized crime scene and become a mob kingpin. He unleashes a plague, turning its victims into mindless followers. Cyrus' heir is busy rooting out a traitor and is unable to stop the coming turf war in the realm of man.

The fate of all rests with Homicide Detective Anna Duke, who steps into the shoes of her mentor while coming to terms with unrequited love. As she tries to clear the fallen hero's name, she takes on a case where corpses go missing. Her new partner is reported dead. She learns the truth about her true identity and uncovers a trail of secrets questioning her tragic past. She journeys to avert the destruction of all creation.

-Spoilers?

Chained to a rock in a dry stream bed, Jeff Wrage knew he’d become a helpless prisoner who could do nothing more than wait for his captor. Stormy skies threatened from directly above him with bright flares of lightning snaking among sooty clouds and disappearing. Out of the corner of his eye, he could detect that the sun was shining brightly on the other side of the rock.

Scant rays of brilliant sunshine peeked over the rock, reflecting bright light off a magnificent golden shrine on a bank not far from where he was chained.

This can’t be real. He’d never seen a place like this in his life.

Large wet drops crashed against his skin. The coolness of the rain streaking down his body caused steam to rise from his skin, which he noticed had turned a dark shade of crimson.

The only being this red was….

“Lucifer,” a calm voice echoed from above Jeff on the shoreline.

A giant, dressed in white armor sparkling like diamonds in the spare sunlight, stepped into view. He wielded a golden-hilted silver sword in one hand and a silver shield with the Latin inscription “Quis ut Deus” (I am like God) on the front in the other hand. He loomed above Jeff. A large gold cross ran down the center of the giant’s breastplate. A second inlaid golden cross glinted at the center of his white helmet. The helmet obscured his face, save for flawless ivory skin which radiated a blinding light. There was something across his back casting a large shadow, but Jeff couldn’t see what it was.

“You were thinking of Lucifer, whose skin is often portrayed as red,” the giant said. The ivory giant stepped into full view. From his back a pair of massive wings spanned over ten feet wide and five feet long majestically fluttering in the breeze, yet didn’t cast a shadow. The rain pelting Jeff in the eyes didn’t touch this giant. He certainly was no man. The only thing Jeff could compare it to would be—

“An angel,” the giant completed Jeff’s sentence again. “You are correct.”

-For aspiring writers, any tips?

I would just encourage them to write every day. It’s easy if you’re not a full-time writer to get out of the habit. I’d also say that no matter how much rejection you face that you need to keep going until you see your dreams through to the end.

-What’s your favorite book/genre to read?

I read mostly crime fiction or mysteries, often with some sort of supernatural or paranormal element.

-What’s your favorite thing you’ve ever written?

I think I improved my writing skills in Wrage. When I decided to expand Grim into the Sons of Darkness series with Wrage, I incorporated many references from religion and historical lore. The “War Scroll” from the Dead Sea Scrolls foretells of an apocalyptic fight between the Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness in which Light will earn eternal peace by destroying Darkness. Each son in the Sons of Darkness series will represent a deadly sin, and each son in my future Sons of Light series will symbolize a cardinal virtue. Wrage introduces the coming struggle between these two forces in both the supernatural and mortal realms.

ABOUT JOSEPH

As a boy, Joseph Spencer immersed himself in the deductive logic of Sherlock Holmes, the heroic crime fighting of Batman and Spider-Man, and a taste for the tragic with dramas from poets like Shakespeare and Homer.

Joseph Spencer lives in central Illinois and has a full-time job as a manager at a 9-1-1 emergency communications center. He graduated summa cum laude from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale with a Bachelor’s of Arts in Communications.

He’s the author of the Sons of Darkness series of occult crime thrillers inspired by the Dead Sea Scrolls. The “War Scroll” from the Dead Sea Scrolls foretells of an apocalyptic fight between the Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness in which Light will earn eternal peace by destroying Darkness. Each son in the Sons of Darkness series will represent a deadly sin, and each son in my future Sons of Light series will symbolize a cardinal virtue.

Joseph worked as a newspaper journalist for ten years in large regional daily newspapers at Peoria, Ill., Burlington, Iowa, Martinsville, Va., and Grand Junction, Colo. Five years ago, Joseph switched careers to join public safety because the outlook of the newspaper industry wasn’t too bright. That’s when he started thinking about a fiction writing career because I missed the creative outlet of writing. Joseph has been writing fiction for the past 2 ½ years.

Visit Joseph’s website. Connect with him on Facebook, and follow him on Twitter @josephspencer00.

Check him out on Google+, Goodreads, and Linkedin.

YouTube trailers
-GRIM
-WRAGE

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Hey readers,

Chained to a rock…ouch.

Follow the rest of the tour here.

And don’t forget to comment for a chance at a prize.

Joseph will be awarding a $25 Starbucks gift certificate to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

Something About Fantasy

Good Wednesday,

I recently read a review of a fantasy book I enjoyed. This review, however, came from someone who didn’t quite enjoy the book as much as I did, and their review included many complaints about the story. No way do I think that everyone should like the books I like, but one of this person’s issues caught my attention.

The review’s writer was annoyed that the book’s tech level was reminiscent of both Medieval and more industrial revolution-type stuff. Upon reading this, I deduced one of two things about this reader. Either they just wanted something else bad to say about the book, or they are unaware of one of the biggest characteristics of the fantasy genre.

Fantasy is just that, fantasy. It is fake, fantastic, imaginary, fictional, pretend. Epic fantasy in particular is whatever the author wants it to be. The world can function however the author wants it to. Magic can have whatever powers and impact the author wants. Seasons can happen (or not happen) in whatever order (or no order) the author wants. Technology can exist in whatever mode the author wants. The beauty of fantasy is that it does not need to follow the rules of the real world, thus a world that includes tech from various parts of Earth’s history is totally acceptable.

There you have it—something about fantasy. Something important to boot. I’ve talked to people who hold the belief that all fantasy worlds are “just earth with different place names and some magic thrown in.” My urge upon hearing this opinion is to pat those people on the head and tell them “it’ll be all right, child.” 

Thanks for reading.

Mary
@desantismt on Twitter

How to Give a Good Critique (Part II)

Hi folks,

I’ve been very MIA lately. I had pages of thesis due Friday (I submitted 60 of them), and my Teaching Popular Fiction class began last week. Don’t be surprised if, in future, there are posts about teaching.

There isn’t a post about teaching today, though I hope something is learned. Back in March I wrote a post about giving a good critique. I’d like to add to it.

-How not to word a critique—“You need to do the following.”

Even if something would improve a story/fix confusion, starting with the words “you need” is not a good way to convey this. The idea of a critique is not to come off as if you are attacking either the writer or their work. Critiquing, yes. Criticizing, no. To the writer, “you need” says “I know better.” Even “There needs to be” is better. That says “in order for the story to work, from my perspective, the following needs to happen.” Be careful with this, though. Use only when explaining things that have already happened that, as of yet, do not make sense. Do not say it about things that have not happened yet because that is telling the writer how to write. And no one likes that.

-Listen to your critique partners

And remember what they say. If they repeat themselves about a change they are making, don’t say you didn’t hear them or that you didn’t know. On top of this, do not back up your “I didn’t hear/know” with your version of how you want the story to go. That will, in all likelihood, not be received well.

Now, “take these broken wings (lessons?) and learn to fly.”

Thanks for reading, and I should be back to posting more regularly.

Mary
@desantismt on Twitter