Stories I Ate This Month: March 2018
So this month has been a bit of a
bust. I haven’t read many book or watched that many movies, but the show must
go on. Also, as a side note, I haven’t finished any season of any particular
television shows this month, but I’ve started a few promising ones that will
hopefully be completed in April. But anyway, here’s all the books and movies
I’ve conquered this month.
The first two books I read this month are The Hanging Tree and Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch. These books are the 5th and 6th book in his Peter Grant series which feature Detective, you guessed it, Peter Grant as he investigates criminal matters in London with a tendency for the supernatural. If you haven’t read my review about the other books of this series, I’ll reiterate. Ben Aaronovitch combines everything that I love within his novels, and does it in such a fashion that you can feel the commitment to his craft with every paragraph. His expertise with the London area and the unordinary is clearly visible and addictive in every book of this series. I’m giving both of these books and A.
The third book that I read this month is the long-awaited The Case for Jamie by Brittany Cavallaro. This is the third book of the Charlotte Holmes series, which tells the story of the descendants of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson and their adventures. In the third novel of this series, Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson discover a nefarious plot that is determined to destroy the Holmes and Watson families. Again, my opinion may be a little biased due to my love of mysteries and, more specifically, the entire lexicon of Sherlock Holmes. However, what I like about this series is that I never know what to expect. I can deduce general pieces of the puzzle, but that final moment of the novel where everything comes together is incredibly satisfying. Cavallaro manages to pull everything quite nicely while still keeping the reader in suspense for the next novel. I’m going to give this novel in the series an A-.
The final book that I read for this month is The Carnelian Crow by Colleen Gleason. This novel is the fourth novel in the Stoker and Holmes series, which, as you may have guessed, is a book series that depicts the life of the descendants of the Holmes and Stoker families. You may have also noticed a pattern developing for the month of March. Apparently, I’ve been incredibly obsessed with mysteries, especially those featuring Holmesian qualities. Although, this series is interesting in that it is set in a Victorian steampunk era. So, there are some interesting and original aspects found in these books that are different from most of the mysteries I’ve read for the month. For example, this novel delves further into the roles of women during the time, especially for women who fight their gender roles. However, for me, the ending completely missed the mark. I felt that some elements were unnecessary and took away from the overarching plot line. With that in mind, I’m giving this book a B+.
Onto the movies! The first movie that I saw in the month of March was Black Panther. If you’ve been living under a rock, Black Panther is the newest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and it features the King of Wakanda, T’Challa. King T’Challa returns home and fights to handle domestic disputes of the Wakanda nation before the consequences affect the entire world. Overall, I loved this movie. It played a bit like the Marvel version of The Lion King, but I found that it worked for the movie overall. The cast of characters were compelling and endearing, and I can honestly say that I can’t wait to see them again in the next Avengers movie. I’m giving this movie an A+.
The next movie I saw this month is The Princess Bride. Yes, I have never seen this movie before. My friends were horrified, which is why one of them forced me to watch it with them. The movie features a story about a woman in medieval times who is in love with a man who supposedly dies and is forced to marry the prince of the kingdom. Hilarity ensues. Honestly, I found the entire movie so charming. It was funny and heart-warming, and I understand how after thirty years, this is still a beloved movie. I’m going to go ahead and give this movie an A+.
The last movie I saw this month is Saving Mr. Banks. This movie has been on my to-watch list for awhile now, since my mother recommended it to me several months ago. I finally had an opportunity to watch it, and as a bonus, I got to see it with my mom! Saving Mr. Banks tells the story of how Walt Disney convinced the writer of the Mary Poppins series into joining forces to create a Disney movie featuring Mary Poppins. However, it also delved into the writer’s family life, and how it inspired her to write Mary Poppins in the first place. I thoroughly enjoyed this movies, especially the little Easter eggs references. However, the constant back and forth between the present and the past was often jarring, and there were points where I would have preferred it to be more linear. Also, the ending of the movie seemed very abrupt. I expected more of wrap-up, and when it didn’t happen I felt that I had missed something. Overall, I’m giving this movie a B.
And that’s my list for this month! Hopefully I will get back on track during April, both on how many stories I consume as well as posting as soon as the month ends. I will say that I’m doing better than last month for my posting schedule. So, keep your fingers crossed, and keep an eye out for my next post later this month. See you then, lovelies!
The first two books I read this month are The Hanging Tree and Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch. These books are the 5th and 6th book in his Peter Grant series which feature Detective, you guessed it, Peter Grant as he investigates criminal matters in London with a tendency for the supernatural. If you haven’t read my review about the other books of this series, I’ll reiterate. Ben Aaronovitch combines everything that I love within his novels, and does it in such a fashion that you can feel the commitment to his craft with every paragraph. His expertise with the London area and the unordinary is clearly visible and addictive in every book of this series. I’m giving both of these books and A.
The third book that I read this month is the long-awaited The Case for Jamie by Brittany Cavallaro. This is the third book of the Charlotte Holmes series, which tells the story of the descendants of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson and their adventures. In the third novel of this series, Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson discover a nefarious plot that is determined to destroy the Holmes and Watson families. Again, my opinion may be a little biased due to my love of mysteries and, more specifically, the entire lexicon of Sherlock Holmes. However, what I like about this series is that I never know what to expect. I can deduce general pieces of the puzzle, but that final moment of the novel where everything comes together is incredibly satisfying. Cavallaro manages to pull everything quite nicely while still keeping the reader in suspense for the next novel. I’m going to give this novel in the series an A-.
The final book that I read for this month is The Carnelian Crow by Colleen Gleason. This novel is the fourth novel in the Stoker and Holmes series, which, as you may have guessed, is a book series that depicts the life of the descendants of the Holmes and Stoker families. You may have also noticed a pattern developing for the month of March. Apparently, I’ve been incredibly obsessed with mysteries, especially those featuring Holmesian qualities. Although, this series is interesting in that it is set in a Victorian steampunk era. So, there are some interesting and original aspects found in these books that are different from most of the mysteries I’ve read for the month. For example, this novel delves further into the roles of women during the time, especially for women who fight their gender roles. However, for me, the ending completely missed the mark. I felt that some elements were unnecessary and took away from the overarching plot line. With that in mind, I’m giving this book a B+.
Onto the movies! The first movie that I saw in the month of March was Black Panther. If you’ve been living under a rock, Black Panther is the newest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and it features the King of Wakanda, T’Challa. King T’Challa returns home and fights to handle domestic disputes of the Wakanda nation before the consequences affect the entire world. Overall, I loved this movie. It played a bit like the Marvel version of The Lion King, but I found that it worked for the movie overall. The cast of characters were compelling and endearing, and I can honestly say that I can’t wait to see them again in the next Avengers movie. I’m giving this movie an A+.
The next movie I saw this month is The Princess Bride. Yes, I have never seen this movie before. My friends were horrified, which is why one of them forced me to watch it with them. The movie features a story about a woman in medieval times who is in love with a man who supposedly dies and is forced to marry the prince of the kingdom. Hilarity ensues. Honestly, I found the entire movie so charming. It was funny and heart-warming, and I understand how after thirty years, this is still a beloved movie. I’m going to go ahead and give this movie an A+.
The last movie I saw this month is Saving Mr. Banks. This movie has been on my to-watch list for awhile now, since my mother recommended it to me several months ago. I finally had an opportunity to watch it, and as a bonus, I got to see it with my mom! Saving Mr. Banks tells the story of how Walt Disney convinced the writer of the Mary Poppins series into joining forces to create a Disney movie featuring Mary Poppins. However, it also delved into the writer’s family life, and how it inspired her to write Mary Poppins in the first place. I thoroughly enjoyed this movies, especially the little Easter eggs references. However, the constant back and forth between the present and the past was often jarring, and there were points where I would have preferred it to be more linear. Also, the ending of the movie seemed very abrupt. I expected more of wrap-up, and when it didn’t happen I felt that I had missed something. Overall, I’m giving this movie a B.
And that’s my list for this month! Hopefully I will get back on track during April, both on how many stories I consume as well as posting as soon as the month ends. I will say that I’m doing better than last month for my posting schedule. So, keep your fingers crossed, and keep an eye out for my next post later this month. See you then, lovelies!
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