Okay, so I really liked this book. It’s a massively different beast than American Gods, but at the same time, it very much feels like it’s a part of that universe. Anansi Boys is on a much smaller scale than American Gods was. While American Gods dealt with gods fighting against each other, Anansi Boys is an extremely personal story about the children of a god (Mr. Nancy, Anansi) connecting with each other and coming into their own.
It’s hard to compare Black Dog with The Monarch of the Glen. They’re such different stories. But I have to say that I think I like Black Dog better. Monarch felt more like an American Gods story, but Black Dog was more engaging.
I loved the kind of ghost story feel it gave me the whole time I read it. Again, there was some nice development with Shadow, but I still wish they’d focus more on the whole son of Odin thing.
But I digress. This short is really good, it’s well paced, builds up tension expertly, and then resolves everything in a satisfying way. I definitely enjoyed it. Here’s hoping for a true American Gods sequel!
(4 out of 5 wands)
Some amount of time has passed since the end of American Gods, and Shadow Moon has been traversing around Europe. He ends up in Scotland, hired to be security for a mysterious party held in a mysterious mansion. As always, all is not as it seems.
It’s an interesting little follow-up to American Gods. There’s sort of a throw-away reveal about Shadow in the story. Who he is. I wish that had been elaborated on more. Maybe that’ll be the topic of any eventual full sequel to American Gods.
Netflix has released the first trailer for its adaptation of Death Note and I gotta say that I am pumped. I’m fine with any changes they make, as long as it works in the context of the movie and makes the movie stronger. I always felt like the anime and manga didn’t explore the concept quite in depth enough. So much of it was about L trying to catch Light and not enough was put into exploring how the death note impacts someone who uses it, and the utter damage they can cause. It looks like this movie might explore that some, and if that’s the case, color me excited.
Bring on August 25 when Death Note premieres on Netflix!
As lame as this sounds, there’s simply not enough positive things that can be said about this book. So instead, I’ll give a few warnings. This book is a slow burner. You’ll be nearly a hundred pages in before you really have an inkling as to what the plot is about, and from there, the pacing doesn’t really quicken much. But that’s okay! It’s something that really works in the favor of the book. If you can’t handle open minded discussion of religions and gods, then this book is not for you. However, it masterfully and respectfully hands many mythologies and ties them into a cohesive, satisfying, engaging story that’s well worth the time it will take you to read it.
I mean, it’s not good. It’s not terrible, but it’s not good. Emma Watson really isn’t a strong singer. She’s trying, but she just doesn’t have the voice to pull off the role. Maybe watching her is better (I doubt it – I’ve never found her acting to be terribly strong, she has her moments and she’s not terrible by any means, but she’s also not great either). From the moment Watson starts singing, you can hear the autotune. I normally am not a person to even notice autotune (supposedly lots of things have been autotuned, and I rarely hear it), but Watson’s autotune was painfully noticeable from the first word. And it took me right out. Yeah, she looks the part of Belle and she’s star power, but she can’t sing the part of Belle. And that’s important.
STARZ has released a new trailer for the upcoming American Gods TV series and boy does it look good.
This first issue of Dark Horse Comics’ adaptation of American Gods covers essentially the entire first chapter of the book without any deviation. Much of the narration from the book is kept in the comic, done as word boxes on panels describing the action. The artwork itself is good. It’s definitely a style you have to get used to, but once you get used to it it’s really quite beautiful.
In terms of writing, it doesn’t seem like P. Craig Russell has done much aside from copy and abridge the original language of the book. Which is fine – it’s often better to not fix something that isn’t broken.
From the authors of the New York Times bestselling novel Welcome to Night Vale and the creators of the #1 international podcast of the same name, comes a mystery exploring the intersections of faith and science, the growing relationship between two young people who want desperately to trust each other, and the terrifying, toothy power of the Smiling God.
Nilanjana Sikdar is an outsider to the town of Night Vale. Working for Carlos, the town’s top scientist, she relies on fact and logic as her guiding principles. But all of that is put into question when Carlos gives her a special assignment investigating a mysterious rumbling in the desert wasteland outside of town. This investigation leads her to the Joyous Congregation of the Smiling God, and to Darryl, one of its most committed members. Caught between her beliefs in the ultimate power of science and her growing attraction to Darryl, she begins to suspect the Congregation is planning a ritual that could threaten the lives of everyone in town. Nilanjana and Darryl must search for common ground between their very different world views as they are faced with the Congregation’s darkest and most terrible secret.
Thoroughly Modern Reviewer 