Still very funny.
Perhaps the best season, so far.
Both Jean Smart as Deborah Vance, a legendary (aging) Las Vegas comic, and Hannah Einbinder as Ava Daniels, her young comedy writer, are hilarious.
They are the world’s worst hikers, though. 😀
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Excellent.
The chase takes them to Glacier National Park. A Grizzly shows up.
Shadow Woman (1997) is 3rd book in the Jane Whitefield series by Thomas Perry.
Jane Whitefield is a Native American (Seneca) who has made a career out of helping people disappear.
When her latest client, a Las Vegas gaming executive who has lost the trust of his criminally-connected bosses, asks for help, Jane Whitefield gets him out of town with a spectacular display of casino magic.
Then she keeps her promise, gives up her dangerous trade, marries her loyal doctor, and settles down to live peacefully in upstate New York.
As if.
… her client screws up.
Jane’s highly developed code of honor makes her leave her bridal bed to rescue him from an eerily psychotic Los Angeles couple who use everything from sex games to attack dogs to track him down.
Another great Lucas Davenport book. He’s morose and unmotivated at the start, his future wife having just left him.
John Sandford:
Secret Prey, the ninth of the Prey series featuring Lucas Davenport, is the most intricately plotted of my books, at least so far …
… Secret Prey, starts with a murder, and then expands to a whole batch of murders, extending more than twenty years back in time. There are numerous suspects.
There are at least three subplots, unrelated to the main story, but fitting within it (the after-effects of an old romance, the beginnings of a new romance, the detection and arrest of a bunch of improbable opium junkies) and the main plot itself has a couple of subplots, including a continuing case of domestic abuse, and another new romance. …
JOHN SANDFORD ON SECRET PREY – Author’s Introduction
The first book in this trilogy was excellent ➙ Even.
Though still entertained by David Trevellyan, something of a British naval intelligence officer James Bond, I found the plot of this one much less skilled.
Die Twice (2010) is 2nd in the David Trevellyan trilogy.
He’s one of the best undercover agents in the world. A seasoned operative for British intelligence.
But when he finds a body in the streets of New York, David Trevellyan is a prime suspect.
Arrested by the NYPD, interrogated by the FBI, Trevellyan swears he had nothing to do with it. But no one believes him―especially when the victim turns out to be a federal agent.
Now his country won’t help him. His contacts can’t save him. But that won’t stop a man like Trevellyan. Whoever set him up is going down.
Even if it kills him…
Lael Wilcox is my cycling inspiration.
Incredible positive and upbeat.
In 2024, Lael Wilcox set a new world record for circumnavigation of the earth by bicycle.
For 108 days, 12 hours and 12 minutes she rode, joined by friends and fans, with her journey documented by Rugile Kaladyte.
This is the film of that ride, filled with highs and lows, incredible roads, friends and fans. Beyond the record, it’s about the experience and the connections made, and how the bicycle makes it possible.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. (90min.)
Excellent
Andrew Grant is the brother of bestselling thriller writer Lee Child. When he writes Reacher, his pseudonym is Andrew Child.
Even (2009) was his 1st published novel. And it’s great. Much different than Lee Child.
Our hero is David Trevellyan, something of a British naval intelligence officer James Bond.
He’s one of the best undercover agents in the world.
A seasoned operative for British intelligence.
But when he finds a body in the streets of New York, David Trevellyan is a prime suspect.
Arrested by the NYPD, interrogated by the FBI, Trevellyan swears he had nothing to do with it. But no one believes him―especially when the victim turns out to be a federal agent.
Now his country won’t help him. His contacts can’t save him. But that won’t stop a man like Trevellyan. Whoever set him up is going down. Even if it kills him…
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Worth watching. But not essential unless you a Dune nutcase.
Too much palace intrigue. Too dark. Too confusing.
There are some beautiful visuals, of course.
A big Dune fan, I was sceptical whether I’d enjoy the TV spinoff on one of the universe’s most appealing elements: the Bene Gesserit.
Dune: Prophecy is a prequel to the Denis Villeneuve films Dune and Dune: Part Two, taking place approximately 10,000 years earlier.
It draws upon, but is set after, the Great Schools of Dune novel trilogy (2012–2016) by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson.
The show was met with mixed reviews, with a 70% on Rotten Tomatoes and an even lower 66% Audience Score. ..,
… it “lacks the spice of Denis Villeneuve’s films,” …
What Went Wrong With Dune: Prophecy
I wasn’t really cheering any of the characters. But Travis Fimmel as Desmond Hart is intriguing.
Perhaps more humour would have helped. The dialogue is dry.
I expect season 2 to be much stronger. This epic TV series has potential.
Quite good.
An easy read. But with some entertaining twists.
House on Fire (2020) is 4th in the series.
Nick Heller, private spy, exposes secrets that powerful people would rather keep hidden.
At the funeral of his good friend Sean, an army buddy who once saved Nick’s life and had struggled with opioid addiction since returning wounded from war, a stranger approaches Nick with a job.
The woman is a member of the Kimball family, whose immense fortune was built on opiates. Now she wants to become a whistleblower, exposing evidence that Kimball Pharmaceutical knew its biggest money-maker drug, Oxydone, was dangerously addictive and led directly to the overdoses and deaths of people like Sean.
Nick agrees instantly, eager to avenge Sean’s death, but he quickly finds himself entangled in the complicated family dynamics of the Kimball dynasty. …
Some studies suggest hay fever is becoming more prevalent and severe, and climate change is a significant factor.
Warmer temperatures and longer growing seasons are causing plants to produce more pollen, and this increased pollen load is contributing to longer and more intense allergy seasons.
In 2021, 1 in 4 adults and 1 in 5 children — more than 80 million people — in the United States reported suffering from seasonal allergies.
I started to suffer in my 30s. But for the past 20 years I can’t really say my Spring allergies have gotten any worse.
The only treatments that help me (temporarily) are exercise, showers, and inexpensive Diphenhydramine pills. Available over-the-counter in the USA.
PLOT TWIST
For reasons unknown, in Spring 2025 I suffered less than any year for decades prior.
NOW I have high hopes for Spring 2026,
This is by far the best totally A.I. generated music video I’ve seen, so far.
Easily as good as some radio hits.
The creator, Chris Johann, only has a few thousand followers on YouTube.
I can’t find this song on YouTube Music — BUT when Chris can monetize, how can humans compete?
The total cost of this music video is probably less than $1000.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Rick McCharles 