July 12th's Weekly TV Thoughts

American Ninja Warrior – I also get so incredibly nervous when Joe runs.  Glad he made it.  Nice to see Rob again even if he didn’t make it very far.  Not too many fast finishers, but an impressive number of finishers overall.

 Lego Masters – I correctly picked the top two teams.  I preferred the other team’s build, but it’s hard to argue since both were impressive.  At this point, it really does get hard to see teams go.  They’ve all had great builds, but one issue can send you home.  And so many of them were breaking this week, too.  But only one on the runway.

 Quiz with Balls – There were some hard questions tonight, at least for me.  And some super easy ones.  How did people from Brazil get that one wrong?  Didn’t seem to be any super big swings in the game, just slow and steady people going in the pool.

 The Librarians: The Next Chapter – As much as I typically don’t like the flashback to see how we got there stories, I do enjoy something like this where we get different perspectives.  Nice to see them focusing on different characters letting us get to know them better.  And that final scene?  I’m very curious to see where they are going with that.

 The Snake – Yikes!  I get that lying and manipulating are part of the game.  But man the gaslighting is out of control.  I have such respect for the pastor walking away like that.  Yes, his fate was pretty obvious, but still, I respect him for it.  And I’m glad he didn’t turn into a manipulator like everyone else. I don’t like them adding new people this late in the game.  That just doesn’t seem right.

 Destination X – I thought they were in Venice from the clue we got they didn’t.  So seeing the players all over the place and no where close to that was interesting.  And the players reactions when they learned where they were was so fun.  Sorry to see the bold strategy didn’t pay off and the alliance was broken.

 Press Your Luck – I was so worried she was going to wind up hitting a whammy at the end.  That did seem to be the theme of the night, after all.  But she got a very nice prize package there at the end.

Movie Review: The Christmas Quest

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Decent romance with good Christmas elements

Cons: The quest part of the plot is undercooked

The Bottom Line:

Iceland at Christmas

Treasure hunt does not quite work

Makes it average

“Is This Everyone You Imagined It Would Be?”  “No.  I Imagined You Being Chased by a Bolder.” “There’s Still Time.”

When I was looking at Christmas movies to record in 2024, The Christmas Quest caught my eye for a couple reasons.  The idea of a Christmas treasure hunt sounded fun, plus I was fans of the stars from their mystery movies.  Sadly, the movie didn’t live up to my expectations.

Stefanie (Lacey Chabert) has followed in her mother’s footsteps.  She’s become an archeologist who tracks down long lost or forgotten treasures.  Her mother spent years trying to track down one particular treasure, the legendary treasure of the Yule Lads.  She spent many Christmases in Iceland looking for it.

So when a stranger (Derek Riddell) shows up in Stefanie’s office saying he has a new clue for the Yule Lads’ treasure, she jumps in to find it.  However, it quickly becomes apparent they need an expert in the Norse languages, so Stefanie turns to her ex-husband, Chase (Kristoffer Polaha).  As the two follow a trail of clues in Iceland, will they find their old spark?

The problem with his movie was it didn’t quite know what it wanted to be.  Was it trying to be a typical Hallmark Christmas romance?  Was it looking to be a treasure hunt movie?  Did it even want to squeeze in Christmas elements?  It did the romance pretty well.  Some of the Christmas moments seemed genuine, while others felt forced into the story.  And the treasure hunt?  That was the biggest disappointment of the film.  It had the elements there, but they were all undercooked.  It was doubly disappointing since that was the main thing I was hoping to enjoy with this film.

I was also left wondering, given the theme of the movie, why was it Chase was okay with leaving his parents behind for Christmas to go off with his ex-wife?

This is really Lacey and Kristoffer’s movie, and they do a great job with it.  The rest of the cast all have very small parts.  They mostly work, although a few didn’t quite pull it off for me.

The real star here is Iceland.  Yes, the movie was filmed on location, and it makes you want to travel to Iceland.  Maybe not in the winter (I hate the cold), but it is absolutely beautiful.

I feel like there is a version of this movie that does a better job of balancing the elements so everyone is satisfied when they finish watching this movie.  But that’s not the movie we got.  If you want to fill 90 minutes, The Christmas Quest will do that, but don’t expect the quest to be an equal part of the story.

Book Review: The Cunning Cruise Ship Caper by Sally Carpenter (Sandy Fairfax Teen Idol Mysteries #3)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Sandy and the rest of the characters in a fun mystery

Cons: Slow to start; one out of time reference

The Bottom Line:

Cruising for murder

Can Sandy find the killer?

Another fun book

Sandy’s Cruising Toward Another Murder

While the Sandy Fairfax Teen Idol Mysteries were on my radar for a while, I finally gave the first one a try last year, and I enjoyed it.  It’s been a delight revisiting him, and The Cunning Cruise Ship Caper, the third, was another enjoyable book.

As the series title implies, Sandy was big in the 1970’s, when he had a singing career as well as a TV show where he played a teenage detective.  But now, it’s 1993, and Sandy’s career has faltered, in part due to his lifestyle.  But newly sober, he’s trying to rebuild his life, taking any job his agent can book for him.

Which is how Sandy finds himself on a cruise ship.  He’s joined by his sister and a band, and his job is to provide two shows a night on a week-long Caribbean cruise.  It should be easy enough, right?  Complicating things is the dead body that Sandy finds in his dressing room the first night of the cruise.  The victim was part of another show on board the ship.  Sandy doesn’t feel like the cruise ship’s security is taking the murder seriously, especially if they consider him a suspect.  Can he figure out what really happened before the cruise ends?

The book gets off to a bit of a slow start, giving us more of the set up than we really needed.  Yes, some interesting subplots are introduced here, especially for Sandy’s sister, who is blind and had a very small singing career of her own.  It was still entertaining to read, but I do wish it were a little faster to get going.

But once Sandy finds the victim, the plot picks up.  There were plenty of great twists and turns to the story, and I was kept guessing until near the end.  Yes, I did figure things out a little before we were supposed to, but not by much.  And I’m not complaining, either, especially since I only knew the big picture.  Naturally, I found the ending logical, and I appreciated how all the details were wrapped up.

Since Sandy is rarely in one place for long, going wherever he can get a job, we are slowly getting to know about his world.  That’s definitely the case here since this is the first time we get to see him interact with his sister.  I really liked that relationship, and I appreciated how her blindness was used in the story and what it showed us about both of them.

Yes, Sandy is continuing to develop as a character, and I enjoyed seeing that again here.  We get a couple of supporting players who show up on the ship, one of whom is a bit of a surprise.  Not that I’m complaining.  The suspects were good as well.

I mentioned earlier that these books are set in 1993.  Unfortunately, the author drops in a pop culture reference for something that came later in the decade.  It’s just one line, but it did throw me.  Still, that’s a minor complaint.

Spending time with Sandy continues to be fun.  I’m glad there are several more books for me to read.  I can’t wait to see how else he finds murder on the comeback trail.  If you are looking for a fun cozy, you’ll be glad you picked up The Cunning Cruise Ship Caper.

Check out the rest of the Sandy Fairfax Teen Idol Mysteries.

TV Show Review: Home Improvement - Season 8

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Laughs with a good family sitcom

Cons: Randy really is missed, show is showing its age

The Bottom Line:

A cast departure

Sitcom still providing laughs

As the show bows out

“Couldn’t You Have Some Kind of Special Blooper Show?” “Dad Already One.  It’s Called Tool Time.”

By the time season 8 of Home Improvement originally aired in 1998 and 1999, I knew it was the final season before they officially announced it.  No, I don’t have any inside information or a psychic ability.  I could just tell they were running out of story ideas.  And an original cast member leaving certainly didn’t help.

If you’ve missed the show, it was a sitcom from the 1990’s and a huge ratings hit for much of the decade.  It featured Tim Allen as Tim Taylor.  His job was hosting Tool Time, a show on a local access station that talked about building, remodeling, do it your self projects, cars, and anything that would appeal to men.  His cohost on the show was Al (Richard Karn) with Heidi (Debbe Dunning) their assistant.

On the home front, Tim was married to Jill (Patricia Richardson).  They had three boys, Brad (Zachery Ty Bryan), Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), and Mark (Taran Noah Smith).  Rounding out the cast was the Taylor’s next door neighbor, Wilson (Earl Hindman) who used his knowledge of obscure tribes and ancient philosophers to offer Tim and Jill advise with whatever issues they were facing.

As I teased earlier, Randy didn’t stick around for long this season.  Jonathan Taylor Thomas wanted off the show to focus on his schooling, so they sent his character off to Costa Rica on an exchange program focused on environmental issues.  He did come back for the Christmas episode, but that was the last time we saw him.  We only saw him in flashbacks during the finale.  Honestly, his departure left a hole in the show since his character got some of the best sarcasm and laughs of the three kids.

In order to help deal with the character loss, Tim’s younger brother, Marty (William O'Leary) became a larger presence this season.  Still only a recurring character, Marty moves in with the Taylors after his marriage implodes, even bringing his twin daughters along for a few episodes.

Yep, a show bringing in young characters since their main cast is getting older.  A sign a show is going to be winding down.

Over the course of this season, Brad tries to focus on soccer and his grades so he can get a scholarship to college.  Jill works on her thesis to graduate with her master’s degree in counselling.  Al gets closer with his girlfriend, Trudy (recurring guest star Megan Cavanagh).  And, of course, we get another epic Christmas decorating episode.

Rewatching the earlier seasons, there is a clear formula to this show.  Tim does something stupid.  It causes an issue with Jill.  Wilson sets him straight, and Tim and Jill make up.  Fortunately, the show began to grow beyond that as it went along.  The boys growing up certainly helped.  Yes, we still get episodes like that in this season, but they aren’t as plentiful.  And Jill makes a few mistakes of her own that need Wilson’s help.  Could it have done better in not falling into the stupid man trope?  Yes.  But it was still better than it used to be.

While I’ve bemoaned the loss of Randy, the show was still very funny this season.  Yes, even when the show went for the obvious joke, the actors brought their best to it and made me laugh.  And there are some unexpected laughs over the course of the season.  Watch this season compared to some of what passes for sitcoms on TV these days, and you can tell that the genre is in serious trouble.  (Not all of the shows on today are bad, but a lot of them are.  That’s a topic for another review or two.)

The actors all know their characters at this point, and they work well together to bring the laughs out of the scripts they are given.  I enjoy watching the group of them together.

We even get some great laughs from the serious two parter when Jill has to get some pretty major surgery.

The show does delve into some more adult jakes than you might expect from a family sitcom.  Part of me wishes they’d left things cleaner.  On the other hand, most of these comes from Tim and Jill talking to each other, and I do appreciate them showing a couple that is married and still attracted to each other.  And, compared to most of what was on TV then and definitely what is on today, the show is still fairly tame.  Still, adults might want to brush up on what was on the show so they know what their kids might be asking them about.

Which brings us to the multi episode finale.  Officially, there are three episodes in the finale, which aired over two weeks, but I feel like the episode before the official finale should be included since it sets up the multiple episode arc.  It starts when new rules from Tool Time’s sponsor leads Tim to decide to quit.  Jill gets a job offer that would require the family to move.  And Al decides to get married.  One of those episodes is a clips show, but the rest all deal with these storylines.  I really liked how Tim handled Jill’s job offer.  Quite possibly the most mature he was in the entire run of the series, even if he did still have to get a nudge from Wilson.

In with the episodes on these discs is the original retrospective that aired immediately after the series finale back in 1999 with bloopers and interviews with the cast about the show.  This gets the episode count for the season to 28, all of which are preserved in this set in their native full frame and stereo sound.

In the way of extras, we get a season long blooper reel and a 45-minute reunion special that aired a couple of years later.  It just has Tim, Richard, and Debbie before a live audience introducing clips of the show.  Honestly, between that, and the clips episode of the show, we get a lot of duplicates.  Still, it is fun to watch.

While not one of my all time favorite sitcoms, there is a reason people look back at Home Improvement fondly.  While season 8 might not have the best episodes of the show, it still serves up plenty of genuine laughs before we leave the Taylor family.

Book Review: Frightened to Depths by K. B. Jackson (Cruising Sisters Mysteries #3)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Characters we love in another strong mystery

Cons: All cons frightened away

The Bottom Line:

Victim a werewolf?

Puzzling, fun mystery

With great characters

Nothing to Be Frightened About Here

It’s been six months since the release of the third Cruising Sisters Mystery, and the fact that I’m just now picking up Frightened to Depths is only a reflection of how many other books have been calling my name this year. It was certainly worth the wait since I enjoyed it. 

When this book opens, it’s been a year since Charlotte McLaughlin’s husband died, leaving her a cabin aboard a luxury full time cruise ship. No, she knew nothing about this cabin since it was where he’d meet up with his mistress and their child. But Charlotte and her sister, Jane, have moved in and enjoyed exploring the world in style. 

When Charlotte and Jane’s cruise ship docks for a couple of days in New Orleans, they run into an old crush of Jane’s. He joins them aboard the ship, along with a band reuniting with a former member. But when that band member is shot with a silver bullet under a full moon, Jane’s new beau looks like a suspect. After all, he is writing a book about New Orleans's werewolf legend. Will finding the truth cost Charlotte her relationship with her sister?

While the set up may sound complicated, the book does a good job of easing us back into Charlotte and Jane’s world while introducing us to the suspects and victim. It isn’t long before the murder happens, and the plot introduces us to some nice twists before we reach the logical climax. 

Even though we are on a cruise ship, we don’t see too much of some of the supporting players. It was a bit disappointing, but only a small disappointment. The main characters are all here, and I appreciated the growth we saw in some of their relationships. The suspects were just as strong, and did their job keeping us guessing perfectly. 

I have to give a special shout out to Charlotte and Jane’s relationship in this book. While the story is told from Charlotte’s point of view, Jane’s point of view is well represented. We understand where both of them are coming from as they try to navigate the strain they go through here. I really enjoyed it and what it showed us about both of their characters. 

The only thing I’m frightened of at the end of this book is that this might be our last visit with the characters. If Frightened to Depths does turn out to be the end of the series, fans will be happy with how they sail into the sunset. But I’m hoping we will get more with them. 

Movie Review: Signed, Sealed, Delivered - Home Again

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Strong story for Norman and Rita in the middle of intriguing mail mystery

Cons: Nothing worth bringing home

The Bottom Line:

Lost vase in the mail

Put POstables in action

Franchise still charming

“Is That a Joke?” “Maybe.”

I’ve never been one for binging a series because I find that I start to see plot points coming even sooner than I should.  (And yes, I’m watching these movies and writing the reviews much faster than I am putting them up on my blog.)  So I was pleasantly surprised when Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Home Again managed to surprise me a couple of times on the way to the climax.

We joined the POstables with a couple of changes in their lives.  While The Mailbox Grill is no more, it’s last owner Ramon (supporting player Zak Santiago) has opened a new restaurant.  Meanwhile, their office has been moved.  As Shane (Kristin Booth) is trying to decorate their new office, she accidentally knocks a hole in the wall, revealing a hidden room with a stack of mail from 1999.  Sadly, the room has a leak in it, so the mail is damp and partially damaged.

But in the middle of the mail is a package containing what appears to be a valuable vase.  The gang quickly tries to figure out who sent it so they can return it.  Where will this lead?

Meanwhile, Oliver (Eric Mabius) must deal with the changes in his routine and Norman (Geoff Gustafson) tries to make a good impression on Rita’s (Crystal Lowe) parents when they arrive in town as a surprise.

I really do love all four members of this team, so it was nice to see Rita and Norman have a prominent storyline.  Oliver and Shane still feel like the leads to me, but the storyline with Rita’s parents is much stronger than those two often get.  While the ending was a bit predictable, it was still wonderful.

As I teased earlier, I didn’t find the main mystery predictable.  They zigged a couple of times when I thought they would zag.  Maybe some other day I would have picked up on those things early, but not today.  Yet, these twists were logical given everything else going on in the story.

As always, the movie is going to pull at your heart strings several times during the almost 90-minute run time.  But if you are watching this movie, it’s probably no surprise since almost everything this franchise has produced has had that effect on me.  It still doesn’t feel like manipulation, which is saying something.

Among the guest cast for this movie are Kim Delaney, Barry Bostwick, and Colleen Camp.  Whether a recognized name or not, the cast does a good job here, and I enjoyed seeing them bring this story to life.

Once again, this franchise will find you uplifted and encouraged.  That alone is reason enough to watch Home Again.  Combine that with character you can’t help but love and an engrossing story and you’ll be glad you spent time with it.

This movie is part of the Signed, Sealed, Delivered Movie Collection Volume 3.

July 6th's Sunday/Monday Post

Time again for a Sunday/Monday Post.  As usual, I will be linking up to:

Sunday Post
Sunday Salon
Stacking the Shelves
Mailbox Monday
It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

I hope everyone here in the States had a good Independence Day.  The friends who host my monthly game day had some friends over.  Yes, we played some games, but just generally hung out.  Stayed way too late playing Mario Kart 8.  As in, I need to take a nap if I know what's good for me.

Other than that, this last week was month end close at work.  We should have closed on Thursday like normal (day 3), but there was an issue with the system, so we weren't able to.  It's been postponed until Monday, that is assuming the IT people get the system working again over the long weekend.  Definitely feel for them, but glad we got a bit of a reprieve.

Joke of the Week:

My friend kept nagging me about pretending to be a flamingo, so I had to put my foot down.

This Past Week on the Blog:

Sunday - Sunday/Monday Post

Monday - June 2025 Reading Summary

Tuesday - Novella Review: Murder by Moonlight by Julie Mulhern

Wednesday - Movie Review: Jaws

Thursday - Book Review: Mistaken Identity Crisis by James J. Cudney

Friday - Movie Review: Jurassic World: Rebirth

Saturday - Weekly TV Thoughts

This Coming Week on the Blog:

Sunday - Sunday/Monday Post

Monday - Movie Review: Signed, Sealed, Delivered - Home Again

Tuesday - Book Review: Frightened to Depths by K.B. Jackson

Wednesday - TV Show Review: Home Improvement - Season 8

Thursday - Book Review: The Cunning Cruise Ship Caper by Sally Carpenter

Friday - Movie Review: Christmas Quest

Saturday - Weekly TV Thoughts

Book Haul:

I've got some ebook deals to talk about this week.  Most of these are older deals I snagged, but they are all still on sale if you hurry.  At least they are as of Saturday afternoon.

This first one I just snagged on Saturday.  I've eyed Iris Crawford's long running series of catered murders for years.  But that's as far as I've gotten.  The first, A Catered Murder went on sale for 99 cents, so I couldn't pass that up.

You know what's better than that?  A freebie.  Body in the Books was featured Friday in a weekly email I get from an author about one of her friend's books that is on free.  This is the first in a series from Heather Huffman, and sounds good.  And it's hard to pass up free if it sounds good.

Next is A Brazen Curiosity by Lynn Messina.  I wish I remembered how this one crossed my radar recently, but I went ahead and got it when the ebook went down to $2.99.  It featured an "old maid" of 26 in Regency England and sounds like it could be good.

Then comes Pomona Afton Can So Solve a Murder by Bellamy Rose.  This is the first in a series about an heiress solving her grandmother's murder.  Yes, that can be quite depressing, but in this case, the book sounds more fun than series.  We'll see when I get a chance to read it, I guess.  Not passing up $2.99.

Next up is Off the Air by Christina Estes.  It's another debut from this year, and this time the main character is a reporter in Arizona.  And this one is still currently $2.99.

We jump to 99 cents with The Mysterious Case Missing Motive by Michele Pariza Wacek.  This series features a woman who winds up getting roped into helping her great aunt solve mysteries.  Sounds like it would be fun.

Finally, for $1.99, you can get The Queen of Poisons by Robert Thorogood.  This is the third in his Marlow Murder Club series.  I loved the first and already bought the second, so I grabbed this while it was on sale.

This should keep me busy for a while.

What I'm Currently Reading:

I've barely started Killer Kung Pao by Vivien Chien.  Too busy having fun for the holiday weekend.  This is book six in a series I generally enjoy, so I'm expecting to like this one.  But I'm only one chapter in as I type this.  So maybe I'll post this so I can get some reading done.

Have a great week, everyone!

July 5th's Weekly TV Thoughts

Fox decided not to air new shows this week, which surprises me since the 4th wasn't until Friday.  But since that's about half of what I watch these days, my list is very short this week.

American Ninja Warrior – Bummed about Lance.  He’s another I always root for, although he’s not the most consistent on the course.  The brothers were pretty amazing.  Whenever they start talking someone up, it makes me nervous when they run, even if they are running last, when we typically get someone who finishes.  Speaking of which, I was so happy the woman who kicked things off finished.  It’s rare we see someone finish so early.  And yes, I do think they choose which order to show us the runs in.

The Librarians: The Next Chapter – It was nice to get to know Connor a bit better.  And talk about a head trip.  They really had me going for the final third there.  I knew something was coming when they got the crown back so easily, of course.

Destination X – Wow.  This is the problem with alliances if everyone knows.  And for some of them to be so off with the year.  Not that Peter was close, but he was closer.  Good move to get rid of the one person who knew.  But that’s a brutal twist.

Movie Review: Jurassic World - Rebirth

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Action sequences, some effects

Cons: Characters and acting are okay at best, predictable

The Bottom Line:

Hunting dino blood

Excuse for more monster thrills

Film’s okay at best

“I Can Guarantee Your Safety.  More or Less.”

Back when Jurassic World: Dominion came out, they told us that it was going to be the end of the franchise.  But life, or in this case a profitable franchise, finds a way.  Now, just three years later, we get Jurassic World: Rebirth.  While it has its fun moments, it is just average overall.

While it’s only been three years for us, it’s been five years in Jurassic World time.  During that time, the dinosaurs that were unleased on our world have mostly died off.  (I guess the writers like that particular storyline from Fallen Kingdom as much as I did.)  The atmosphere had changed enough that they can only survive in a band around the equator.  And that area is off limits to humans as a result, something rare that all governments agree on.

Our McGuffin of a plot involves a medical company needing blood from the three largest dinosaur species across water, land, and air to use in their research for a new heart medication.  Really, it’s just an excuse to get a group of characters on an island with dinosaurs, right?  Anyway, as far as characters go, we have Zora (Scarlett Johansson) as the mercenary hired to try to provide some security.  Mahershala Ali is Duncan Kincaid, a friend of Zora’s whose boat they use to get to the island.  Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey) is the scientist along since he is an expert on dinosaurs.  And Rupert Friend is the head of the pharmaceutical company funding all of this.  Since this is Jurassic Park/World, we need some kids to be in danger as well.  We get those in the form of a father, his two daughters, and the older daughter’s boyfriend (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Luna Blaise, Audrina Miranda, and David Iacono), who are swept up into the madness against their will.

You’ll notice that there is a lack of characters we already know.  We get a reference to Dr. Grant, but that’s it.  The producers decided to work with completely new characters here.  So, in many ways, you could jump in here.  Honestly, given the times they flashed on the screen at the beginning of the film, I’m not even sure how this truly fits in with the other movies.  The five years post Dominion is the official log line, but it feels like it should have been longer to me.

If you’ve seen any of the films in the franchise, or most creature horror films in general, you pretty much know how this is going to go.  And the film does little to surprise us.  Yes, there were a couple of small ones along the way, but nothing earth shaking.  (Well, except the large dinos).

That’s not to say it is bad.  I got caught up in quite a few of the action sequences.  And there are some good ones.  There are also scenes that aren’t as developed as they could have been.  There are a lot of characters to juggle, and the movie’s run time is just over two hours, so I’m sure some things were truncated.  Honestly, I’m thankful because too many long chase scenes and this would have started to feel bloated.  But there are a couple of standout scenes you’ll enjoy.

One thing that made is hard for me to care about the movie was the characters.  They feel pretty generic.  The attempts to give them some backstory fell flat, mostly because it was predictable.  And the character arcs we got were just as shallow and predictable.  If they tried to give us any arc to the characters at all.

The acting didn’t help.  While the cast did okay with the action and the one liners, any time they had to show any depth, it felt forced.  Not all of them were bad, but there were several that really struggled.

The special effects were also a mixed bag.  Some of the scenes were jaw dropping gorgeous, and I bought everything I was being sold.  Others?  Pardon me, but your green screen is showing.

For good measure, we also get an anti-drug company message.  Given the McGuffin of the plot, it wasn’t surprising.  But the writing was so clunky that it was almost comical.

Speaking of laughs, we do get some get one liners and other purposefully funny moments to break the tension.

As has become the case with the franchise, we get some new monsters.  Honestly, I wish we’d done without them.  They didn’t add anything but some gruesome images.  The velociraptors are reduced to a cameo.  And the prologue?  We could have lost that and not lost anything from the movie.

Jurassic World: Rebirth isn’t the worst the franchise has to offer.  It’s also far from the best.  It’s just kind of average.  If you are anxious to see the film, you’ll be glad to see it in the theater.  But if you decide to wait until it is available to watch at home, that’s a fine alternative as well.

Book Review: Mistaken Identity Crisis by James J. Cudney (Braxton Campus Mysteries #4)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Kellan

Cons: Weaker writing, overstuffed story

The Bottom Line:

Death in cable car

Other situation, too

Overstuffed story

Can Kellen Identify Another Killer?

Those who have been reading the Braxton Campus Mysteries know that we’ve had a storyline building toward a climax. Going into Mistaken Identity Crisis, I was hoping we’d get some resolution to that particular story. Sadly, a split focus meant the book turned out to be just okay. 

For those new to the series, it features Kellan Ayrwick, who has returned to his hometown in Pennsylvania. He’s teaching at the college in the area, a place his family has worked at for years. 

This book picks up within days of book three ending. Summer session is about to get started, and Kellan is teaching one class on documentary making. He’s also been the official liaison with the man working on the cable car that unites the two parts of the campus. When he goes to check in one morning, he finds the contractor dead. Quint had been friends with Kellen’s younger brother years before. Still, Kellen vows he isn’t going to investigate. But he can’t help but poke around when his brother starts to become a suspect. 

Meanwhile, that ongoing situation I mentioned? It’s definitely heating up. I’m not going to tease anything from it because there is no way to do so with revealing some spoilers. But let’s say that I’ve felt this particular storyline, while intriguing, has also had some pretty serious soap opera elements to it. 

Unfortunately, the two combine for a book that is over stuffed with story. The mystery of Quint’s death would have been enough for a full novel. But throw in the other storyline, and there’s a bit too much. While we do get answers and everything is explained at the end, I feel like the ending is a bit too convenient. At the same time, I was certainly glued to the book as I was reading the climax to see how everything would play out. 

There’s a large cast of characters. Frankly, a little too large. And with all the connections going on, it was a struggle for me to keep all those connections straight as I read. The cast of characters at the beginning only helped with that a little. 

I’ve complained in the past about how some of the relationships are a little too contentious for my taste. I was glad to see that toned down here. In fact, I think one relationship progresses a little too quickly away from contentious, especially given where things stood in the previous book, which was just a few days ago for the characters. 

And let me be clear, I do like Kellan and many of the recurring characters. I enjoy rooting for them to figure out how to handle everything that is being thrown their way. 

The writing is a little weak, thanks in part to the author’s habit of summarizing large sections of dialogue. It just doesn’t pull us as fully into the story as I would like. And yes, I also recognize that this would make an overstuffed book even longer. I’m nothing if not hypocritical. 

This is an eight-book series, so I’m half way through. I’m curious enough about where the characters are going to wind up that I will keep reading. It helps that I’ve already bought the ebooks. 

Those who have been intrigued by the first three books will want to pick up Mistaken Identity Crisis. Personally, I’m curious to see where the story is going to go from here. 

Here are the rest of the Braxton Campus Mysteries.