Movie Review: JUNGLE

 JUNGLE
Staring Daniel Radcliffe, Alex Russell
Director: Greg McLean
Writers: Justin Monjo (Screenplay), 
Based on a True Story
Action / Adventure
115 Minutes 
2017

It is the early 1980s. Yossi Ghninsberg (portrayed by Daniel Radcliffe) meets Karl Rupretcher (Thomas Kretschmann). Karl convinces Yossi that there is greater adventure than the normal tourist traps.He claims he can lead Yossi through the Amazon rain forest where they will encounter rare Indigenous tribes no other tourists ever see, but that he is friends with. Karl also promises that the stream beds are filled with gold.

Yossi convinces his "friends," guys he recently met, to join him. Kevin Gale (Alex Russell) is a professional hiker and photographer, and Marcus Stamm (Joel Jackson) is a school teacher. They are mildly reluctant, but agree.

Despite Karl being a total stranger, they Yossi knows this will be the adventure of a lifetime. Yossi has dreamed of this kind of journey all of his life. A chance to do something different. His father never understood his free-spirited lifestyle. Something like this would change things. And he so wants to believe Karl is on the up and up.

The school teacher is struggling. The days of hiking takes a toll. His feet are covered in blisters. The jungle is an unforgiving place for those not prepared for several rounds with nature, poisonous insects, and deadly beasts.

Quickly the three friends discover hidden truths about their guide, and their chance for survival in the jungle is cut in half. Tension. Suspense.

The acting is very good (although I am not a fan of Radcliffe's Israeli accent). The dialogue is crisp. You grow to like the three friends, and you just are never sure about Karl. For a nearly two-hour movie, the time goes be fast. There is a lot happening, even when it doesn't seem like a lot is going on.

Radcliffe carries the movie. When his character, Yossi, is separated from the others, he wanders through the jungle looking for a way out. Plagued by delusional visions, faced with harsh weather, and tasked with surviving in the wild. Pretty intense!

I did some research on the actual adventure. Yossi has been through a lot. I am glad they made this journey into a film. I liked it very much, unsettling as it was. 

TRAILER for JUNGLE

Phillip Tomasso
Author of the Amazon Best-Selling adventure novel, BLOOD RIVER

Book Review: MERITROPOLIS, by Joel Ohman

Joel Ohman
MERITROPOLIS
CreateSpace, 214
226 pages
Dystopian / Thriller

A friend bought me a copy of this book. Thought I would enjoy it. I appreciate him introducing me to a new author worth following. I would be remiss if I then, in return, didn't try and do the same for all of you! Please, let me take a few minutes and tell you about Joel Ohman's MERITROPOLIS.

In the self-contained city of Meritropolis population is limited to exactly fifty-thousand. A body more and the balance could be upset. The balance, otherwise, is maintained by the System. People earn a number. The higher the number the better. Through inking, the number is displayed on one's forearm, unhideable. The lower the number the more in-danger one's continued existence within the city becomes.

Lower numbers are not killed. They are banished, forced to live outside the fortress walls. Those banished tend to be the sick, the young, and the elderly --those less likely contributing the better of the society, the better of the System. Raised to believe only vicious creatures live beyond the surrounding walls it is obvious anyone surviving more than a night or two is unlikely.

Building on the loss of his own little brother, Charley (a high number), is revolts before witnessing the banishment of a young crippled girl. He intervenes, regardless of the consequences he may face. Only thing is, his bravery is rewarded instead of punished.

The Commander of Meritropolis promotes Charley to a Hunter. During Charley's training more truths are revealed. There is more to the city than meets the eye, and more beyond their city than everyone has been lead to believe. Additionally, there are more people against the System than initially suspected. This means, Charley is not alone. It also means that the time is NOW to start a revolution.

Ohman has dragged me into his MERITROPOLIS world, and I am enjoying myself. There is a second book in this series, and a whispered-about third on the way. I will be ordering the second book today. I need to see what happens next. The world building Ohman did was taut, and compelling, believable, and probable. I enjoyed the artwork beginning each chapter giving us a visual starting point for the mass of new, introduced creatures found outside the MERITROPOLIS walls. Looking for the next YA dystopian adventure --the next Hunger Games, or Divergent-- worth reading? This book just might scratch your itch!

Phillip Tomasso
Author of the Severed Empire Series,
and The Vaccination Trilogy

Book Review: OFF THE GRID, by C.J. Box

C.J. Box
OFF THE GRID: A Joe Pickett Novel
G.P. Putnam Sons, 2016
384 pages
Thriller / Suspense

So, it turns out C.J. Box has an entire Joe Pickett series. Some fourteen or fifteen Joe Pickett novels. And I, fortunately, just discovered him--or them--or him, the author--Pickett the character. I will admit, I am super excited. Thing is, OFF THE GRID is the latest. Now I must go back and read the other books in the series. (This I shall do gladly!)

Anywho. OFF THE GRID is a brisk thriller. This can be called a Nate Romanowski Novel as much, or as equally, as it can be called a Joe Pickett novel. Seems I missed a lot not having read the earlier books in the series, but I did not feel lost as a reader jumping in at the end. (Good thing!).

By court order, and law, and signed agreements and such, Joe and Nate are not allowed contact with each other. In fact, Nate is wanted by the law. Crimes committed, laws broken. Living off the grid, Nate and his girlfriend, Olivia Brannan are in hiding in Wyoming. They're making a living at not getting found. That is, until they are found.

When the Wolverines come calling, this super secret team of government employees across all branches of the government, Nate has no choice but to hear them out. They need his help. Because of his unique talents as a falconer he may be the only one who can infiltrate a terrorist cell somewhere in the Red Desert. In return, Nate is promised his record will be wiped clean. Erased.

However, if he fails, if he is caught, if anything goes wrong--the Wolverines will deny any involvement, and Nate will go to prison for previous criminal activity, and pay for whatever new charges tacked on.

Joe Pickett, a game warden, is called upon by the governor (once again, apparently) to help on a special assignment. He knows he can use the tracking of a rogue bear as a cover. The task will lead the game warden down a road similar to Nate's. The threat of terrorism is all around.

As if never separated, Joe and Nate work together, without knowing the other is even involved, gathering up evidence, and information with the hopes of shutting down, preventing, an act of terror before the terrorist act can be committed!

Box writes terse, taut scenes. His characters are well drafted, and authentic. He pulled me right into the story (which I didn't think would be easy because I knew I was on the latest book in the series, and not the first -- which is the kind of thing that bothers me as a reader). It didn't matter. OFF THE GRID worked as an independent tale, a stand alone novel. It isn't. But it worked as one. Loved the dialogue, and the action. And as I stated up top -- I will be reading the other books in the series!

Phillip Tomasso
Author of The Severed Empire Saga,
and the Vaccination Trilogy

Book Review: THE COURIER, by Gerald Brandt

Gerald Brandt
THE COURIER
Daw
Science Fiction / Cyberpunk

Call me shallow, but I often judge a book by the cover. Well. Not the book, but if the cover doesn't catch my eye, I may not pick it up and see what the story is about. THE COURIER has that grab-me-kind-of-cover. And, when I picked it up to read the synopsis, I was hooked.

Set in the future, it seems the world is past apocalyptic times, and has found a way to function, and thrive, and is right back to its old ways. Apparently, even in the distant future it is the corporations that run everything. Forget about factions. After the world is scorched by nuclear weapons, the city is divided into levels. Actual levels. Think one giant, underground parking garage. The farther down you go, the poorer you must be.

Orphaned, independent, and driven, sixteen-year-old Kris Ballard, has been on most of the Levels. She's a bike courier, making ends meet (barely) delivering packages from point A to point B. At the end of a shift, and despite a nagging feeling, Ballard accepts a last minute delivery. After picking up the parcel at one end of the city, she has to travel across town for the drop off.

Problem is, when she reaches point B, someone is inside the corporate building knifing her contact. Despite hightailing it out of the building, the killer saw her, and those behind the murder have the resources to trace her every move.

With the package still in her possession, Ballard is on the run. It seems like anywhere she seeks solace, she is immediately found. The different corporations want her for different reasons. There is no one she can trust . . . until she is forced to finally put her trust into someone. Ian Miller.

Miller works for A.C.E. and he is a lot like Ballard. A.C.E. is kind of like Greenpeace. They have a role in the future - stopping corporations from taking advantage of the innocent. Only now it is less about the package, and more about staying alive. Can Miller, Ballard, and A.C.E. survive attacks coming at them from every angle, and at every turn? Or is the gig finally up . . .

I loved Brandt's writing. Crisp. Clean. The action was non-stop. The world-building was epic. So much has been set up. There can be a fleet of Courier novels (and I hope there is) in Brandt's creation. As a reader you immediately bond with Kris Ballard, you care about her. She is a tough lead, a likable heroine. I will be keeping tabs on Brandt. He is clearly a writer worth following!

Phillip Tomasso
Author of the Severed Empire Series, and
The Vaccination Trilogy

Book Review: ALCATRAZ vs the Evil Librarians

Brandon Sanderson

ALCATRAZ vs the Evil Librarians (Book 1)

Tor Books

Adventure / Fantasy / YA

Everything in this book is lies! All of it. Some of it. Oh, heck, parts of it. Some of the important parts, and the not-so-important parts. You know what? At this point, I am not sure I can differentiate what actually happened, or didn't happen. But then, I am from the Hushlands, and clearly ruled by the Librarians.

As far as that goes . . . so are all of you! And in that case, you will love this book, and enjoy the confusion it is bound to bring. So much so, that when you are dizzy in the head, the idea of rutabagas, coconuts and cantaloupes will all make sense. (Maybe. Okay, probably not).

Imagine this. You are an orphan. On your 13th birthday you get a delivery. It's a box. Inside the box is a bag of sand. For what it's worth, it's from your Dad. You've been in over a dozen foster homes. Your Dad is supposedly dead. How did the package find you?

After nearly burning down your foster parents' kitchen, it's time for you to move again. Only, when you think the case worker sent someone to transfer you from this residence to the new place you'll call home, it is instead your grandfather, Leavenworth. He wants the bag of sand. It is known as the Sands of Rashid.

And he wants you, because you are bound to save the Free Kingdoms from the Librarians.

This is the reality Alcatraz Semdry is thrust into. As a boy with an amazing talent (because all Semdrys have talents), breaking things is considered powerful. (Leavenworth has the talent of arriving late).

The bag of sand is in the hands of the evil, sinister Dark Oculator. And if the Semdrys don't recover the sand in time it will be used to create lenses with amazing power. Those in control of the lenses will win the war! With a close-knit team, the Semdrys must infiltrate the Library, without getting caught, without getting killed, and find a way to say the Free Kingdoms from being overrun!

Brandon Sanderson has created a young reader adventure that is bound to capture the heart of millions and millions of readers! Captured mine, anyway. Alcatraz is an awesome character. However, his grandfather, and cousins, and the knight, Bastille are equally awesome. The action is fun, and fast. The plot is compelling, and just dark enough. I see there are at least four more books in this series. I will be reading them. With relish!

Phillip Tomasso
Author of the Severed Empire Series, and
The Vacination Trilogy

Book Review: DARK TIDE (Waterfire Saga #3) - Jennifer Donnelly

Jennifer Donnelly
DARK TIDE (WaterFire Saga #3)

Disney-Hyperion

Young Adult/Fantasy  

I am a fan of Jennifer Donnelly. My daughter started reading the WaterFire Saga and insisted I read it, too. I just finished Book 3, Dark Tide. (And just ordered the 4th book in the series). Dark Tide picks up where Rogue Wave left off.

The five mermaids selected by Baba Vraja are still art it, searching for the ancient talismans necessary to defeat keep the underwater realms safe. Problem is Mfeme (Orfeo) is after the same magical objects. He will stop at nothing to get them. Once this all-powerful mage has the relics he will free Abbadon, and unleash darkness and endless torment on all of the sea creatures.

Sera, now leader of the Dark Fins, is not giving up. She has amassed an army of over 20,000. Her problems increased by as many, because she must figure out how to train, and feed, and keep secret the legion under her command. In the Karjord she is doing her best to turn the numbers in her favor. But what she really needs is a reunion with the other mermaids! Together their power is more powerful!

Magic makes trusting anyone a liability. Who is who they say they are? How can anyone be sure?

The race is on. The dangers are real. The enemy is around every corner! The war is coming. There can only be one victor. . . and the book ends.

Great pacing. Awesome characters. Such an original tale (tail, lol)! I wish Disney would make an animated series, or movies from these books! Can't wait for Book 4 to land at my doorstep!

Phillip Tomasso

Fantasy author of The Severed Empire Series

Wizard's Rise

Wizard's War