Review

The Librarian: Quest for the Spear (2004)

the-librarian-quest-for-the-spear

The Librarian: Quest for the Spear (2004)

Director:

Peter Winther

Starring:

Noah Wyle

Sonya Walger

Bob Newhart

Jane Curtin

Plot:

Flynn, an over 30 “professional student,” is banned from more classes, since he already has 22 degrees. Unexpectedly hired by a mysterious library, he’s soon pursuing a stolen artifact from…

Review:

I like this movie because it starts off a franchise that I really enjoy, though I do think the idea is better than the actual execution sometimes. At the very least it’s an awesome movie to have playing in the background while you’re doing something else, though I highly recommend watching it at least once.

Flynn, Noah Wyle, is ridiculously smart but he’s not so far on that side of things that he’s unaware of his own social faults. He’s not even that socially awkward, like sometimes happens with intellectual characters, he’s just not as willing to have meaningless conversation and I think that works great for his character.

It doesn’t even bother me that he’s got a new girl in each movie, I think mainly because they don’t really try and force a whole love angle it’s more of a I’m attracted to you let’s see what happens thing.

Like the movie, love the series, definitely give it a try if you like Indiana Jones.

3.5/5

The Force Awakens (Star Wars Novelizations #7) By: Alan Dean Foster

the-force-awakens-star-wars

The Force Awakens (Star Wars Novelizations #7) By: Alan Dean Foster

Plot:

Set years after Return of the Jedi, this stunning action-packed adventure rockets us back into the world of Princess Leia, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO, R2-D2,and Luke Skywalker, while introducing a host of exciting new characters, including Rey, Finn, BB-8 and Kylo Ren.
Darth Vader may have been redeemed and the Emperor vanquished, but peace can be fleeting, and evil does not easily relent. Yet the simple belief in good can still empower ordinary individuals to rise and meet the greatest challenges.
So return to that galaxy far, far away, and prepare yourself for what happens when the Force awakens…

Review:

I’ve had this for a while but for whatever reason never got around to reading it. After watching Rogue One I’ve been filled with an extreme desire for anything Star Wars so I finally picked this up.

First off it was a lot easier to read than Life Debt, it did jump around from character point of views a few times without a clear indicator, but it wasn’t in first person so I fell into it a lot faster. There were several scenes that I thought were better than the movie, though a few the movie did better as well.

I really enjoyed seeing inside the characters heads and I got a better sense of their character and motivations than just from watching the movie. I really like Rey better than before after reading this. Some of the info about Finn contradicted what was already told in Before the Awakening. He wasn’t as adept at weapons as he came off in that book. I got to see more about Ren as well, though I still don’t think he’s a very scary villain, especially after that scene with Vader in Rogue One.

I thought the novelization was a good read, definitely if you liked the movie, but I’m concerned if what I learned will transfer forward. That doesn’t appear to always be the case, but Disney could want things to be more cohesive so we’ll see.

4/5

Aftermath – Life Debt (Star Wars – Aftermath #2) By: Chuck Wendig

star-wars-aftermath-life-debt

Aftermath – Life Debt (Star Wars – Aftermath #2) By: Chuck Wendig

Plot:

Set between the events of “Return of the Jedi” and “The Force Awakens, “the never-before-told story that began with “Star Wars: Aftermath” continues in this thrilling novel, the second book of Chuck Wendig s “New York Times” bestselling trilogy.


“It is a dark time for the Empire. . . .”


The Emperor is dead, and the remnants of his former Empire are in retreat. As the New Republic fights to restore a lasting peace to the galaxy, some dare to imagine new beginnings and new destinies. For Han Solo, that means settling his last outstanding debt, by helping Chewbacca liberate the Wookiee s homeworld of Kashyyyk. 

Meanwhile, Norra Wexley and her band of Imperial hunters pursue Grand Admiral Rae Sloane and the Empire s remaining leadership across the galaxy. Even as more and more officers are brought to justice, Sloane continues to elude the New Republic, and Norra fears Sloane may be searching for a means to save the crumbling Empire from oblivion. But the hunt for Sloane is cut short when Norra receives an urgent request from Princess Leia Organa. The attempt to liberate Kashyyyk has carried Han Solo, Chewbacca, and a band of smugglers into an ambush resulting in Chewie s capture and Han s disappearance.

Breaking away from their official mission and racing toward the “Millennium Falcon” s last known location, Norra and her crew prepare for any challenge that stands between them and their missing comrades. But they can’t anticipate the true depth of the danger that awaits them or the ruthlessness of the enemy drawing them into his crosshairs.


Review:

First person present is never going to be my favorite tense to read in and like last time it took me some time to get into. It also took me a little bit to remember who was who and what was going on.

I ended up putting this book down a lot and didn’t really feel inspired to finish it until after I saw Rogue One. However, I don’t blame that solely on the book but more on the fact that I’m days away from my due date and having serious issues concentrating on anything.

Lots happened and Han, Leia, and Chewie were a bigger part in this story. There was more of a focus on romance and love interests in this one and I’m not sure if I like it. Didn’t really need the love triangle with Norra, though that ended up being interesting so I guess it was alright. The other romance was just background and I don’t really see why it was necessary.

I really liked the parts that showed the New Republic and the issues that it was experiencing. The transition is difficult and I like that things aren’t just coming easy. It was realistic that these people who are supposed to be good were falling into the same old traps.

Jas has somehow become a female Han Solo which I could do without. She was such a badass on her own and now she’s dealing with pretty much the exact same issues he had without the swagger and cool. She’s distant and blunt, which works with badass, but the rest of her story that was revealed was boring and pretty much already done.

Jom has been chewed up and discarded. Sinjir tried to grow only to fail and apart from Jas seems to be ignored which is sad.

I like the characters in this series a lot. I like the nods that I’m getting to the movies and the universe that’s being fleshed out. I just think there were too many threads going on in this one. The crew split up into groups and we followed both of them, we followed Admiral Sloane, Han, Leia, and a few other people. It was a lot and I think the main crew ended up suffering because of it.

3.5/5

Travelers (2016-?)

travelers

Travelers (2016-?)

Network:

Netflix

Starring:

Eric McCormack

MacKenzie Porter

Nesta Cooper

Plot:

Hundreds of years from now, surviving humans discover how to send consciousness back through time, into people of the 21st century. These travelers assume the lives of others, while attempting to save humanity from a terrible future.

Review:

Once again Netflix sprung something on me I hadn’t heard anything about. I think I might be hanging out in the wrong places on the Internet.

As soon as I saw this was about time travel I knew I had to give it a try. Sure it was set in present day so there would be no cool settings, but whatever, Continuum was pretty cool when I watched it.

After watching two episodes I had to bail. I just can’t handle the slow pace. The concept is fine, but there wasn’t any kind of reveal that made me want to stick around. None of the characters were super appealing either. I guess I was supposed to be drawn in by the fact that they were disarming a dark matter bomb, but I was never on the edge of my seat. I didn’t care. The stakes weren’t properly revealed to make me care, just little vague hints.

Oh well, one less show I have to watch.

2/5

Born of Ice (The League #3) By: Sherrilyn Kenyon

born-of-ice

Born of Ice (The League #3) By: Sherrilyn Kenyon

Plot:

In the Ichidian Universe where The League is law, most live in fear. We fight back. Welcome to a world where corrupt assassination politics dominate everyone. It’s kill or be killed. Welcome back to the future…and meet hell’s new breed of heroes. Devyn Kell spent his life in service to the League until he learned of the double dealing and backstabbing that was costing innocent people their lives. Refusing to play those politics, he became a Runner; someone who makes sure planets get the weapons, medicine and supplies they need to survive. May the gods have mercy on any who get in his way, because he definitely won’t. Alix Garran is a woman on the run from a past she can’t escape. Signing on to work for Devyn as a System’s Engineer, she finds a cause she can fight for—and a man she can respect. But as Alix’s past catches up to her, and Devyn’s old enemies turn lethal, they have to fight together…or fall alone, in Born of Ice, the third bestselling League novel from Sherrilyn Kenyon.

Review:

This book involves the children of the people from the first two books. It felt almost like Kenyon didn’t want anything too bad to happen to them, especially after how brutal she was in the first two books. On the one hand it was nice to have a character not be so damaged on the other hand that’s really the only thing she changed. The heroine still was hiding something from the hero, something big, and the man was still huge. This time at least the heroine wasn’t tiny and the hero didn’t take long to get over the lie. He understood why she did what she did, so that was nice.

I like the world, I do like the characters even though I complain about them, but I’m hoping that the plot of the next one is different. I’ve read it before but I can’t remember.

3.5/5