My plan was to do a movie review marathon but November kicked my butt. I only saw 2 awesome flicks...so I added a couple quick holiday reads that made me smile the whole way through (except at the end because I wanted more).
5 STARS! World War Z is so good. I've watched it three times. You know the premise probably. The world is over. The dead walk the earth, but in this case they run super fast and infect you. Most zombie movies are about survival and sadly most of the cast don't make it. You endure a whole lot of body munching, screaming, and gore. In World War Z, you move past that because there is no survival for anyone if they don't figure out how to neutralize the zombie infestation. So it's a mystery wrapped in an apocalyptic thriller. If you've always wanted to watch a zombie flick but were scared of entrails all over the place, this is the movie for you. Plus Brad Pitt is so very awesome in it. He rocks,
and tries to save the world. I love him.
5 STARS! The Way Way Back pulls you into the painful existence that is summer vacation trapped with the worst person ever. Fourteen year old Duncan is stuck spending his summer with his mom and her suck-face boyfriend. I wanted to claw the man's eyes out and kick him in a bunch of places that would make him cry. Luckily, Duncan happens upon a local water park run by a bunch of misfit adults who take him in like he belongs. I loved watching Duncan come to life and I rooted for his mom to follow suit. There's some boy/girl tension. Some divorced parents drama. And the best friend a kid could make in the form of actor Sam Rockwell. Oh how I love him. If you're looking for a feel good journey check out The Way Way Back.
4 STARS! The Gift by Karli Perrin is what I'm dubbing a smiling read. I'm not sure if I've ever read a story where the banter and chemistry entertained me so thoroughly. You have Imogen, a sassy creative writing student and Blake, the best male character ever! Okay, I'll calm down, but Blake is just too good for a tiny novelette. I want more from the pair. Author Perrin does a wonderful job making me swoon and feel giddy for the budding romance, but then the story ends and I kept clicking
next page. How could it end like that? Seriously, I needed an epilogue the same length of the mini-book. If you're looking for a fun, swoon-worthy holiday read, The Gift is a great choice. I have to thank Ki at
Doing Some Reading for gifting me this book. We had a great chat about it.
4 STARS! Snow Daze by Katie Mettner is beyond sweet. The characters were such solid, beautiful people I cheered for them to get their HEA. Dully is a Special Ed teacher with a heart of gold. He rocks. Snow has a doctorate and a disability that would push away some suitors, but not heart-of-gold Dully. They have a chance encounter that piques both interest and hope. The rest was a giant leap of faith. I enjoyed reading about adults going about having an adult romance. And I wasn't expecting the steamy scenes! If you're looking for a total feel good holiday romance, check out The Gift. I first heard about this novella from Tobi at Forget the Housework, I'm Reading. Check out the
post and read about Katie Mettner's awesome mission.
I need to watch World War Z! It looks so good, I love The Walking Dead, but I'd be interested to watch something a bit different that isn't all about the entrails. Plus, you can't go wrong with Brad Pitt.
ReplyDeleteSnow Daze also looks really cute, I really want to read a cute winter romance.
I'm not used to cute or holiday reads, but this one was so sweet. I'm also not used to a complete lack of angst. I miss the angst already, but it was a refreshing break.
DeleteI'm putting World War Z on my Christmas list. I'm not sure if I'll like the book or not, but the movie rocked and I forgot to mention that the women in the movie were all so with it. Brad's movie wife kicked a zombie in the face. Come on! I hope you enjoy it. I missed out on The Walking Dead...okay, I was too chicken. Thanks for stopping by, Tilly!
The only one I've seen it's the World War Z. I thought you wouldn't like this kind of movies, Robyn. :)
ReplyDeleteIt was different zombie movie, I agree, but I am not quite sure about some parts. Even if Brad Pitt was perfect, it stood out to me that everywhere he went, disaster followed. I don't know... I enjoyed it, but I wasn't to persuaded. :)
I can't handle zombie books, but I've watched tons of zombie movies. I love end of the world movies, but I hate movies where the world actually does end and the credits role. Grrh! I get what you're saying about disaster following Pitt wherever he went. I have a rationalization for that. hehe
DeleteDo you have a favorite zombie movie? My three have to be Night of the Comet (80's flick), Shaun of the Dead, and World War Z.
I really want to read the two books you mentioned! I'm in the mood this year to read wintery/Christmasy books. :) I'm glad you loved World War Z so much - that's awesome! :D I'll have to check out The Way Way Back sometime, too. Maybe they'll put it on Netflix!
ReplyDeleteI just read your Christmas Reform School review. This is the first year holiday books ever appealed to me. I'm really enjoying them. I hope you get to see The Way Way Back. I love growing up movies, especially when it's the parents who have more work to do than the kids.
Delete