Monday, January 6, 2020

Digital Review - Lucy in the Sky


*This is a sponsored review. All opinions are 100% mine.


Does anyone recall seeing advertisements last fall for Fox Searchlight Pictures' Lucy in the Sky starring Natalie Portman?

Well, you're not the only one! I never even heard of the movie until I received a press release about it being released to Digital HD on Dec. 17th. For some reason, I was under the impression the movie was about space exploration, so I agreed to watch a digital screener.

The film centers around Astronaut Lucy Cola (played by Portman), who returns to Earth after being on her first mission in space. While all the other astronauts seem to be just fine from the mission, Lucy seems to be a bit loopy! She makes an attempt to go back to a normal life with her husband and niece but all she can think about it is going back to space.

Despite being advised to take things slow upon her return, Lucy is determined to make the cut for the next NASA space mission, even it means nearly drowning just so she can beat an underwater test record. Things take a turn for the worse when she begins an affair with a fellow astronaut, Mark Goodwin (played by Jon Hamm), which is against NASA's rules.

What starts out as a fun fling, quickly turn into an obsession, resulting n Lucy going completely mad.

Digital HD Bonus Extras include:
  • Deleted Scenes
    •  “Lucy Teaches"
    • “Mark Takes Lucy to the Roof” 
    • “Lucy Leaves Erin in the Simulator” 
    • “Lucy and Iris Get Pulled Over” 
  • Director’s Journey 
  • Creating Magical Realism 
  • Making Space 
  • Lucy Cola


Final Thoughts

Review - Star Wars: Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn

Available on Paperback and Kindle!


A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away . . . 

There was a little bitty science fiction film titled Star Wars, written and directed by George Lucas. Released in 1977, the film became so popular that it spawned two sequels, Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, two made-for-television Ewoks movies, two short-lived Saturday morning cartoons, and the infamous (and laughable) 1978's Star Wars Holiday Special. The entire franchise was pretty much dead until 1991 when the Bantam Books published Star Wars: Heir to the Empire by Hugo Award-Winner Timothy Zahan, which is book one in a three-book cycle. Dubbed the "Thrawn Trilogy," the books introduced four new characters — Mara Jade, Talon Karrde, Gilad Pellaeon, and Grand Admiral Thrawn.

Sunday, January 5, 2020

Sunday Post: Gunnie Rose, The Shed, Garfield, and Star Trek

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @  Caffeinated Book Reviewer!

Good Morning, Everyone!


What Am I Currently Reading?


Late last night, I finished reading Star Wars: Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn, so expect my review for it soon. Early this morning, I finished reading The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. My review will be posted on Tuesday. Next, I'll be reading An Easy Death and A Longer Fall, which both titles are part of the of Gunnie Rose series by Charlaine Harris.

Friday, January 3, 2020

Book Blogger Hop: January 3rd - 9th





Instructions: Select all code above, copy it and paste it inside your blog post as HTML


Welcome to the Book Blogger Hop! 


If you want to schedule next week's post, click here to find the next prompt question. To submit a question, fill out this form.

The Book Blogger Hop now has its own Facebook Group! Please join the group to get all the newest Book Blogger Hop updates. Also, you can communicate with your fellow book bloggers in the group.

What To Do


1. Post on your blog answering this question:


"Do you have any New Year's Blogging Resolutions?"

This week's question is submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer.


2. Enter the link to your post in the linky list below. Please enter your Name/Nickname @ Blog Name and the direct link to your post answering this week’s question. Here's an example: Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer

3. Visit other blogs in the list and comment on their posts. Try to spend some time on the blogs reading a few posts and possible become a new follower. The purpose of the hop is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, befriend other bloggers, and receive new followers to your own blog.

The Friday 56: The Phantom of the Opera


Rules

Grab a book, any book.
Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader.
Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it).
Post it.
 Add your (url) post below in the Linky at: www.fredasvoice.com
Add the post url, not your blog url.


The managers did not hesitate; without wasting time in asking how these confounded communications came to be delivered in an office which they were careful to keep locked, they seized this opportunity of laying hands, on the mysterious blackmailer.
page 56%, The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

  My Thoughts

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Midnight Horror Review - Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark


Like many. . . many other kids who grew up in the 80s and 90s, I read the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark trilogy by Alvin Schwartz, which were retold folklores with freaky illustrations by Stephen Gammell. The feature film adaptation was released to theatres back in August. The teasers and trailers looked intriguing. However, I never got a chance to see the movie on the big screen because the one-screen theatre in my small town never got the film. So, I just waited around until it was released on Blu-ray.

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Review - Met Her Match by Jude Deveraux


*This is a sponsored review. All opinions are 100% mine.

Available on Kindle!

Way back in my elementary days, I was probably the only student who was well aware of the romance author Jude Deveraux because my mother was big fan of her novels. With my passion for books, naturally I ended up reading a few of the author's titles; though, reflecting back on it now, I was probably a bit too young for the steamy love scenes. Nevertheless, that was my introduction to Jude Deveraux, and now as an adult, I have become a fan

Jude Deveraux's newest novel, Met Her Match, was published in September, and I was lucky enough to get a review copy from NetGalley. Now I didn't read the book right away because I had 13 horror novels lined up for October so I didn't begin reading it until Halloween night. To be precise, I read a few paragraphs at a time while waiting to give out candy to the trick-or-treaters. I finished reading the book the following Sunday afternoon. Why did it take me so long to write my review? Due to setting up my annual Holiday Gift Guide, as well as Thanksgiving and Christmas, I was swamped during November and December so I put off writing the review until today.

Anyway, Met Her Match is sequel to 2016's The Girl From Summer Hill (Read my review here). It's set in the fictional small town of Summer Hill, Virginia and centers around Terri Rayburn, a woman who runs a summer resort, which is owned by her father. After taking a short trip, she returns home to find a stranger living in her house. That stranger happens to be Nate Taggert, who has spent the last 12 years working in the Middle East as a diplomat. After his fiancé takes a sudden trip to Italy for three weeks, he goes back home to Summer Hill with plans of opening up a business. His uncle sets it up so he can stay in a private house, which happens to belong to Terri!

This is a romance so you can pretty much guess what comes next — sparks fly between Nate and Terri. However, there are rumors that Terri is a heartbreaker, which leads Nate to investigate into her past.

Final Thoughts