I'm a little late with this week's post. I should just call it Monday Night Madness. I spent most the day with a bad wisdom tooth ache, which is somewhat tolerable now. No, it’s not an April's Fool Day joke like the pathetic YouTube shutdown. I was actually in pain for the majority of the day. I’m just now getting over a lower back injury and strep throat. Despite all my setbacks, I still have a positive outlook and I'm still continuing to get into shape (aka healthier). I've been too tired at night to write reviews, therefore I'll be writing the Arkeepers Episodes Two and Three tomorrow.

I'm surprised that I stayed awake through Dallas, Castle, and Bates Motel. Castle has been getting stale, but tonight's "Rear Window" was a treat to watch. Bates Motel keeps getting weirder and weirder, and Norman is slowly becoming Psycho!

It’s difficult to fit so much history and magical creatures and well, general exposition, in three hundred pages. If I’d left nothing out there’s a good chance Silver Hollow would have been closer to five hundred. For those of you who were curious and have asked, here is more of my original write up of the magic behind this world within worlds. 

Instead of the traditional outline, I wrote these little snippets about characters and people/places. The following is just a light portion of the bulk brainstorming.

The People

They choose to live with the old ways, contrary to what is popular or modern. Those outside the Borderlands often live in the cities, where they corrupt society at its core and abuse their gifts for their own merit. But those inside prefer to live in a way the rest of the world forgot. Each holds unique gifts like the angels in Amie’s last novel. Those in the Vale and Borderlands are forbidden to have contact with the outside world. Only a select few go into the cities for specific reasons, to protect their own interests and the interests of their own kind.

But as far as they’re aware, these people are not the descendants of angels. Their life lines are very long, though. It is difficult to tell their ages from person to person. Depending on the purity of their blood and the fullness of their power, one of their oldest can seem to be only thirty and be three hundred. For example, Uncle Henry was actually the younger brother but appeared far older than his younger sibling because he inherited more a gift for knowledge and learning than the Gifts.

Night's Darkest Embrace
By Jeaniene Frost
Publisher: Pocket Star
Pub. Date: November 13, 2012
ASIN: B007QUU9JO
Pages: 122

Review:

Enter a world of Pureblood demons, Fallen Angels and partial demons, such as Mara, who traveled into another dimension called Nocturna when she was a child along with her cousin Gloria. Mara returned to her own world when she was twenty, but her cousin went missing.

Mara blames herself for Gloria's disappearance and possible death. She wants revenge by killing the Pureblood responsible for kidnapping them. She gets help from Raphael; he also originally helped her escape Nocturna. She is not a kid anymore and she will do anything to find her cousin.

The 10th Kingdom
Director:
Starring: Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Scott Cohen, John Larroquette, Dianne Wiest
Studio: Mill Creek Entertainment
Release Date: March 19, 2013
ASIN: B00B04NIZO
Retail: $9.98
Number of Discs: 3
Running Time: 444 minutes
Rating: TV-PG
Buy Link: Mill Creek Direct, Amazon

Review:

Before One Upon A Time magically dazzled the television screens, there was an underrated miniseries called The 10th Kingdom that aired in five-parts on NBC in February 2000. With a stunning cast with Diane West, Ed O'Neill, Camryn Manheim, John Larroquette, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Ann-Margret, Rutger Hauer, and Scott Cohen, one would think this lavish event would be a ratings goldmine, but sadly it received low-ratings despite the fact that it garnered good reviews from critics and viewers.

The miniseries was previously released onto a single VHS, a two tapes VHS set (several scenes were removed), a three disc DVD set, and later a single double-sided DVD, all which are out-of-print. Mill Creek Entertainment recently released a three disc DVD set of The 10th Kingdom, in which I received a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

The 10th Kingdom's plot twisted the classic fairy tales. In the opening, the Evil Queen escapes prison and turns Prince Wendell (the Queen's stepson and the grandson of the late Snow White) into a dog, who quickly escapes through a magic mirror and ends up in modern day New York. The Queen sends Wolf and three trolls after him. The Prince quickly crosses path with a young waitress, Virginia Lewis, along with her janitor father, Anthony Lewis. The Wolf's plans of capturing the prince comes to a halt when he lays eyes on the lovely Virginia, who he instantly falls madly in love with her. He joins Virginia, Anthony, and the Prince when they are forced to into the magic mirror and travel to the Nine Kingdoms. Many dangers and mysteries await them as they try to defeat the wicked queen, restore the Prince back into his body, and find a way home.

The Berenstain Bears: Easter Magic
By Stan & Jan Berenstain
Publisher: Open Road Young Readers
Pub. Date: October 16, 2012
ASIN: B009HICHAC
Pages: 9

Review:

When I was a kid, I was crazy for The Berenstain Bears book series. I collected every book, well until I got older and became interested in other things. Now as an adult, I occasionally buy one of these delightful paperback books at thrift stores.

Sadly the original authors have both passed away, but oldand new books are still being released after fifty-years since the first book was printed. These timeless characters have even made it into the eBook generation. The Berenstain Bears: Easter Magic was released last fall as an electronic release only. It was originally written in 1997. The plot involves Brother and Sister Bear noticing that the winter weather is leaving and signs of spring are all around. That can mean only one thing; the Easter Bunny is on his way.

March is already over and so is the fourth week of Revolt with Nichole Huntsman with a whole new routine of workouts. The program reminds me of the P90X except for the Revolt workouts takes up less than half the time as Nichole Huntsman doesn't waste a single minute. I have had a pair of kettlebells for a few years. I didn't even know how to use them, but I do now as several of the Revolt workouts requite them.

I'm not sore from the workouts anymore, but I recently had a non-exercise (picking up a 30 pound box of cat litter) lower back injury about two weeks ago. It felt fine for a few days, then all of the sudden it came back. I was extra careful during my workouts, but I had to adjust a few routines. I ended up buying the Gold's Gym Waist Trimmer Support Belt and wore it during the rest of this week's workout. I had no back problems for the rest of the week. The belt also came with a lumbar support and a hot/cold pack. I'm happy to say that my back feels about 90% better today. I recommend everyone never to toss around a 30 pound box of cat litter.