Tuesday, September 27, 2011

'Terra Nova' premiere kicks butt!

'Terra Nova' -- Centers on the Shannons, an ordinary family from 2149 when the planet is dying who are transported back 85 million years to prehistoric Earth where they join Terra Nova, a colony of humans with a second chance to build a civilization.

I loved it. Checking several sites on the internet, I found people were all over the board from loving it, hating it, middle of the road. I realize all new shows won't "do it" for everyone who watches, but I sat mesmerized from the very first second through two hours of jam-packed action and story-telling. The special effects were outstanding and made me feel like I was watching a movie. In fact, everything about it felt like a movie.

The action and adventure kept you on your toes. The acting was great, the plot moved quickly, explanations were spelled out and yet left enough mystery and unanswered questions to make you go, "hmm...". The show is clearly making the threats (example: dinosaurs) real and deadly and not baby-fying it but showing people being killed. Huge mysteries sucked me in pertaining to the rock drawings, time travel itself and a different time line, the hidden agenda with a bad-boy colony, living amongst dinosaurs, and how the focal family deals with their new life.

At Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com), at the time of this post, 521 users voted, giving 'Terra Nova' a rating of 8.8 out of a 10. That's impressive!

I will definitely continue watching it. The cost to make this series is huge and I hope it does well with ratings or it will be on the chopping block. Not everything is for everyone, but this show is something out of the ordinary and for anyone loving sci-fi, action-adventure and toss in a few dinos, it's one not to miss! It appears FOX will be re-playing it Saturday night. Check your local listings!

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Paranormal - Urban Fantasy New Book Releases

I just did something fun and informative. I logged into my Amazon.com account and clicked on Gina's Recommendations then searched for New Releases of Books. Amazon (of course) knows my buying history which includes mostly Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult Book purchases - besides having my books for sale there, too!

Here's the lowdown on what books popped up w/brief synopses, several of which I will purchase either in print or ebook versions (some may also be a newly released paperback version of the hardback):

Dark Predator (Carpathian) by Christine Feehan (September 6, 2011):
As brutal as the undead he hunted, Zacarias De La Cruz was a master executioner. Now his stark and savage journey has ended. For his brothers, Zacarias had walked to the edge of madness, but with centuries as a killing machine now left to the past and without a hunt to define him, Zacarias wonders, for the first time in his life, who he really is.
The answer awaits him back home, in Peru, in the betrayal of a woman who is readying her trap, in the vengeance of an old enemy, in the inevitable consequences of a bloody family legacy-and in the deliverance of a lifemate he never could have imagined...


Envy: A Novel of the Fallen Angels by J.R. Ward (September 6, 2011): As the son of a serial killer, homicide detective Thomas "Veck" DelVecchio, Jr., grew up in the shadow of evil. Now, on the knife-edge between civic duty and blind retribution, he atones for the sins of his father- while fighting his inner demons. Assigned to monitor Veck is Internal Affairs officer Sophia Reilly, whose interest in him is both professional and arousingly personal. And Veck and Sophia have another link: Jim Heron, a mysterious stranger with too many answers... to questions that are deadly. When Veck and Sophia are drawn into the ultimate battle between good and evil, their fallen angel savior is the only thing that stands between them and eternal damnation.

Supernatural by Larissa Ione, Alexandra Ivy, Jacquelyn Frank, G.A. Aiken (September 1, 2011): "Vampire Fight Club" by Larissa Ione: When a wave of violence forces shape shifter Vladlena to go undercover, her first stop is a haven of vice - with a dangerously sexy vamp in charge. Both Vladlena and Nathan are hiding something, but they can't conceal the lust that simmers between them..."Darkness Eternal" by Alexandra Ivy: After being held captive by one vampire for four centuries, Kata had no intention of taking another one to the underworld with her. Yet even in the pits of hell, there's no ignoring the intoxicating desire awakened by his touch..."Kane" by Jacquelyn Frank: Kane knows Corrine was meant to be his...just as he knows that truly possessing the lovely human is forbidden. But on the night of the Samhain moon, the beast in every demon in stronger than reason, and Kane's hunger is more powerful than any punishment..."Dragon on Top" by G.A. Aiken: Escorting the highborn Bram through deadly Sand Dragon territory will try Ghleanna's patience...and her resolve. For Bram is determined to enhance the journey with a seduction no female could resist...

The Slayer Chronicles: First Kill by Heather Brewer (September 20, 2011): Joss McMillan’s perfect life crashes down the night he witnesses his sister’s murder — at the hands of a vampire. He then finds out his family’s secret heritage: They are part of the Slayer Society, a group whose mission is to rid the world of vampires. Joss is their new recruit. As Joss trains, bent on seeking revenge for his sister, he discovers powers that could make him the youngest, strongest Slayer in history. But there is a traitor in the Society, one whose identity would shake Joss to the core . . . if the traitor doesn’t kill him first. With over a million copies already in print, The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod is still sinking its fangs into new readers every day. Now, bestselling author Heather Brewer brings us the other side of the story, from the perspective of Vlad’s former friend turned mortal enemy: vampire slayer Joss McMillan. This is the first in a series of five books that can be read alongside Vlad Tod or entirely on their own.

Adam: The Nightwalkers by Jacquelyn Frank (October 25, 2011):
Haunted by magic, beset by evil, the Nightwalkers face their darkest hour yet. And when the unthinkable happens, only one legendary male has the power, the will, to save them: Adam.
 
The Darkest Surrender  by Gena Showalter (September 27, 2011): Possessed by the demon of Defeat, Strider cannot lose a challenge without suffering unimaginable pain. For him, nothing stands in the way of victory. Until Kaia, an enchanting Harpy, tempts him to the razor's edge of surrender. Known among her people as The Disappointment, Kaia must bring home the gold in the Harpy Games or die. Strider is a distraction she can't afford because he has an agenda of his own—steal first prize, an ancient godly artifact, before the winner can be named. But as the competition heats up, only one prize will matter—the love neither had thought possible.…

 Heroes of Olympus, The, Book Two: The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan (October 4, 2011):
In The Lost Hero, three demigods named Jason, Piper, and Leo made their first visit to Camp Half-Blood, where they inherited a quest:
Seven half-bloods shall answer the call,
To storm or fire the world must fall.
An oath to keep with a final breath,
And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.

Who are the other four mentioned in the prophesy? The answer may lie in another camp miles away, where a new camper has shown up and appears to be the son of Neptune, god of the sea. . .


~~~~~~
I found that search extremely interesting and alerts me to when to spend some money on great reading material!

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Fall/Winter 2011 NEW TV Shows - Paranormal & SciFi

Cannot wait! Tons of NEW TV shows coming out for the 2011 Fall/Winter Season. It's impossible for me to watch all of them and still have some semblance of a life, but I'll be watching a few along with several returning shows, too (thankfully)! Since this blog focuses on paranormal (and related) goodies, I will only list those shows that fall under that category:

Fall/Winter 2011 NEW TV Shows - Paranormal & SciFi:

"American Horror Story" (FX), Premieres: Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 10/9c:
A couple who moves to Los Angeles to make a fresh start only to find that their new home is not exactly warm and cozy. Instead, there's a creepy creature in the basement...
 
"A Gifted Man" (CBS), Premieres: Friday, Sept. 23 at 8/7c:
He sees his recently deceased ex-wife, who starts appearing to him to teach him about life from the hereafter.
 
"Grimm" (NBC), Premieres: Friday, Oct. 21 at 9/8c:
Grimm's Fairy Tales twist with a detective who discovers his destiny is to protect humans from the storybook baddies that have invaded our real world.
 
"Once Upon a Time" (ABC), Premieres: Sunday, Oct. 23 at 8/7c:Storybrooke, Maine - a town frozen in time with fairy tale figures who have no recollection of their real identities.
 
"The Secret Circle" (CW), Premieres: Thursday, Sept. 15 at 9/8c:
From the man who gave us Vampire Diaries... a California teen moves to Chance Harbor, Wash., where she discovers she's a witch and joins a secret coven.
 
"Terra Nova" (Fox), Premieres: Monday, Sept. 26 at 8/7c:
Steven Spielberg-produced drama — about a family who travels back to prehistoric Earth to save the human race.
 
Tune in!

Sunday, September 4, 2011

'Finding Bigfoot' - Where's the stealth?

'Finding Bigfoot', on the Animal Planet, starring Matt Moneymaker. First, that dude needs to change his last name. NO ONE is going to think him to be serious or credible with that last name! My husband is sarcastically yelling, "Be sure to commit slander when you're posting that!" haha. I need to state that we do believe in Bigfoot...or whatever he is...BUT this TV show is just plain silly and lacks common sense when trying to find evidence of Bigfoot during location stake-outs. Let me explain:

1) Matt Moneymaker - he really should've used a different last name from the get-go (as I previously mentioned). Every time I see his name on the screen, I cringe. And I must mention the other man named BoBo. Hmmm...a bit unusual.
2) Being so noisy they may as well have been banging pots & pans together in the woods - not likely to find Bigfoot that way. Then again, if they found Bigfoot in the first episode, the stars would be out of a job.
3) Stomping around and talking is a big no-no (kind of repeating #2). I would assume the big furry guy has excellent hearing, so when they're saying, "What was that? Did you hear that?" Then the other person whispers so loudly, "What? Is that you?"  that any nearby Bigfoot would be long gone.
4) Walkie-talkies emit noise. *screech, blip, TALK, blip, screech, beep, buzz* Are they purposefully trying to scare ALL the animals away?
5) There's a possibility the night vision equipment on their cameras and headgear could be visible to a Bigfoot. Who knows what kind of light spectrum different animals can see? Many animals can see in the dark. So as they are stomping about (making noise), the night vision light is bouncing in every which direction, possibly alerting creatures to flee. EEEEK!
6) What's with using an abbreviation for Sasquatch? I about puked when I heard "Squatch".
7) Hanging out one or two days/nights isn't giving them much of a chance to just happen to luck out and have a Bigfoot cross their path. Camp out in the designated spot for at least a week, preferably two weeks. Become part of the environment, blend in, and not stick out like a sore thumb...AND SHUT UP!

I am not stating I hate the show. It's interesting. I enjoy watching and learning more about Bigfoot. But when it comes to the stake-outs, obviously no one has explained to use stealth to their advantage!!

And during the last few minutes of the show, I look at my husband, smile and prepare myself...as sadly, the end results in finding Bigfoot evidence tend to scream at the viewer, which simultaneously I bellow with cupped hands at my mouth: "INCONCLUSIVE!"