Shetland – season 1

On By Rick McIn TVLeave a comment

I finally watched Shetland (2013), the critically acclaimed Scottish crime drama.

Good. Not great.

The first series consists of two episodes, based on the novel Red Bones by Ann Cleeves.

It’s difficult to find anything to complain about. This is serious, well produced television.

Perhaps a little too dire. Not enough levity.

I do like Alison O’Donnell as DS Alison “Tosh” McIntosh. She’s down to earth compared with deadly serious Steven Robertson as DC Sandy Wilson.

Of course I enjoy the remote islands location. And the annual Viking festival.

BUT season 1 was too complicated for me. And the REVEAL was not at all fascinating.

I assume subsequent series are better. Some say season 3 was best of all.

 Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

19th Christmas by Patterson & Paetro

On By Rick McIn books, uncategorizedLeave a comment

Another kinda dumb, non-stop action, entertaining read.

19th Christmas is the nineteenth novel in the Women’s Murder Club novel series  by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro.

Better than average, I’d say.

Christmas is coming …

Detective Sgt. Lindsay Boxer, her family, and her friends of the Women’s Murder Club have much to celebrate. Crime is down. The courts are slow and the medical examiner’s office is quiet.

Journalist Cindy Thomas is working on a story about the true meaning of Christmas in San Francisco.

Then a series of crimes and threats of horrific crimes to come put the entire police force into nonstop action.

At first, all they have is a name, “Loman,” behind the threats. It takes until Christmas before enough pieces come together to find enough to hope to pinpoint where Loman can be caught.


What to do with OLD Glasses?

On By Rick McIn about Rick, ethics, gymnasticsLeave a comment

I hope donated OLD glasses are recycled or reused.

But I’m not sure.

I recall vividly the day in Grade 6 when a teacher told me I needed glasses. I did.

And I’ve worn them non-stop ever since, even doing Gymnastics.

Fortunately 😀 … AVIATORS were cool in my youth. Chicks dig them.

Heavy? Glass? YES !

I’ve had many different pairs over the years, including the most expensive ($500 !) available at Walmart Optical.

These days I get the cheapest 2 for 1 sale at Walmart. NO extra coatings or features.

Good enough for me.

Now … what do I do with all my OLD Glasses?

The Lost Coast by Jesse & Jonathan Kellerman

On By Rick McIn booksLeave a comment

Surprisingly, this is only the 3rd book I’ve read by Jonathan Kellerman and/or his son Jesse Kellerman.

I enjoyed it. This is the 5th book in the Clay Edison series.

Crime Scene (2017)
A Measure of Darkness (2018)
Half Moon Bay (2020)
The Burning (2021)
The Lost Coast (2024)

I only downloaded because The Lost Coast is a terrific hike in California. 😀 … Unfortunately, there’s only one short day hike in the novel.

It’s been almost a year since Clay Edison was forced out of his job at the coroner’s bureau.

Now he’s on his own, working as a private eye.

When a client brings him a fraud case, Clay dives into a decades-old scheme targeting the vulnerable.

His investigation leads him to a bizarre town buried in the remote California wilderness. The residents don’t care much for outsiders. They certainly don’t like Clay asking questions. And they’ll do just about anything to shut him up.

I liked the missing person plot — it kept me guessing.

And I was charmed by the refreshingly simplistic writing style. Unpretentious.

The first half of the book was all good. The second half dragged a bit. Could have been shorter.

The Lost Coast: The gripping new thriller from the international ...

In Praise of Street Musicians

On By Rick McIn music, travelLeave a comment

It’s a treat when happening upon a busker who can entertain.

Here are two musicians I enjoyed while traveling in Europe.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Karen Pirie – season 1

On By Rick McIn TVLeave a comment

I visited St. Andrews, Scotland summer 2024 — and was keen to watch this drama after finding the body was found in the famed cathedral grounds.

What grabbed me first was the unlikely detective, Lauren Lyle as DS Karen Pirie.

So young and seemingly naive.

Karen Pirie is a British crime drama television series based on the Inspector Karen Pirie series of novels by Val McDermid. 

…  a young detective-sergeant, Karen Pirie, is put in charge of what appears to be a twenty-five year-old cold case. An influential podcast series focuses on the case, the unsolved murder of a barmaid, and Pirie is tasked with rexamining it.

Pay attention. The plot is quite complicated with a number of side stories.

The ending has been criticized. Fairly.

The other character I quite liked was Chris Jenks as DC Jason (Mint) Murray. Pirie’s assistant.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Mind Games by Nora Roberts

On By Rick McIn booksLeave a comment

Mind Games is one of the 4 books published by Nora Roberts in 2024.

The woman is a writing machine.

This is one of her typically long books. Many characters. But Roberts is such a terrific story teller that it’s easy to follow.

It’s got a paranormal element, as some of her best books include.

You could still call this a Romance novel, but it’s much, much more. Her books are uplifting for me.

Told in three parts – Tragedy, Living, and The Gift – Roberts proves that her prolific creative mind (at age-79) is still as sharp as ever.

When the tragic murder of her parents ignites twelve-year-old Thea Fox’s psychic abilities, her grandmother Lucy is not surprised because she, too, has the Sight.

Along with those abilities awakened through the tragedy is a connection to Ray Riggs, the man who murdered her parents and who dreams of killing her, too. …

I recommend the audio book as January LaVoy is such a terrific reader.

Murder in a Small Town – season 1

On By Rick McIn books, TVLeave a comment

An excellent TV series.

Murder in a Small Town is a Canadian mystery–drama television series which premiered on Global in Canada, and Fox in the United States on September 24, 2024. …

It is based on the Alberg and Cassandra Mysteries, a series of novels by L. R. Wright.

It was filmed at Gibsons on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast.

In Canada, I watched it free (ad supported) on the Global TV website — but it was a pain.

The romance is consummated half way through the first episode.

Rossif Sutherland — son of the Donald — is the small town police chief.

The gorgeous Kristin Kreuk was a gymnast in Vancouver until grade 11. She’s of Dutch and Chinese Jamaican descent.

The entire cast is good.

Mya Lowe as Corporal Edwina Yen is great. You might recognize her from Yellowjackets.

I’m impressed that the show is nuanced on subjects like racism. And sexual harassment.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

History of the Canadian National Anthem

On By Rick McIn government, musicLeave a comment

Originally, the current Canadian National anthem was composed in French, celebrating Quebec.

The lyrics are totally … separate and distinct … in the 2 official languages.

“O Canada” (French: Ô Canada) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the music, after which French-language words were written by the poet and judge Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier.

The original French lyrics were translated to English in 1906.  Multiple English versions ensued, with Robert Stanley Weir‘s 1908 version (which was not a translation of the French lyrics) gaining the most popularity; the Weir lyrics eventually served as the basis for the official lyrics enacted by Parliament.  Weir’s English-language lyrics have been revised three times, most recently when An Act to amend the National Anthem Act (gender) was enacted in 2018. 

The French lyrics remain unaltered.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

‘Gens du pays’, written by Gilles Vigneault and Gaston Rochon for the 1975 St-Jean-Baptiste celebrations on Mount Royal, Montreal is almost a national anthem in Quebec.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Holmes, Margaret & Poe by Patterson and Sitts

On By Rick McIn booksLeave a comment

A cute idea. In New York City, 3 intriguing, smart, and stylish private investigators open Holmes, Marple & Poe Investigations.

… Could they be related to Sherlock Holmes, Jane Marple, and / or Edgar Allan Poe? 😀

Holmes, Margaret & Poe: The Greatest Crime-Solving Team of the Twenty-First Century

by James Patterson (Author) , Brian Sitts (Author)

This book is popular, BUT I’d rank it far below the (very average) standard for a Patterson.

There are 3 or 4 … maybe 5 different plot threads. NONE of the detectives impressed.

It’s an easy read. Sometimes hard to follow.

Give it a miss.