I’m not a huge Bradley Cooper fan, but I have to give him an A+ for this movie. I wasn’t expecting much from this film and watched it out of boredom more than anything else and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised. The cinematography was very unique in the way it portrayed how the drug made you “see” the world. It was almost as if the cinematographer wanted you to “see through” the clear pill that was NZT as if you were holding it up to your eye. It’s a neat concept, to think what your life could be like if you could use 100% of your brain at the same time. The main character Eddie (Bradley Cooper) is one entertaining slacker turned whiz kid. Limitless is definitely a fun film to watch and The Scribe’s Desk gives it 3.5 loupes out of 5.

Did You Know?: Limitless is based on the 2001 novel The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn? Don’t you just love books on film?

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Right out of the gate this book creeped me out. Being a brunette myself, the title alone was enough to scare me! This was a seriously good book.

Words like unhinged, grotesque, shocking, intriguing, and macabre were spinning through my head as I read the stunning and suspenseful pages. In this book, the lines between profiler and killer severely blur constantly. Cristyn West keeps you guessing, “Just WHO is the killer?” And just when you think you’ve figured it out, she takes you through to another labyrinthine twist.

I found myself wondering, “Just who is watching you?” This was a creepy, gritty, horrifying and shocking ride. Right until the last page I found myself exclaiming, “No way!” This book will make you jumpy, especially if you’re a brunette. You’ll find yourself checking your doors and windows, and looking over your shoulder. You’ll catch yourself watching everyone around you, wondering…

The suspense is drawn out to the last drop, right up until you discover the shocking truth! To catch a killer, just how far would you go? Read Plain Jane: Brunettes Beware and you will discover that there’s a fine line between madness and genius!

Amanda Seyfried dons the iconic red hood in Red Riding Hood.

Seems like Hollywood has fairy tale fever. Beastly is already in theaters and The Brother’s Grimm Snow White story coming soon. Now, Catherine Hardwicke’s Red Riding Hood, starring the wide eyed Amanda Seyfried, the veteran Gary Oldman and the sizzling Shiloh Fernandez, is loping into theaters today. There seems to be a real hankering for fairy tale film fodder these days. I for one can definitely say that I am excited by the prospect of enjoying fairy tales all over again.

As a child, I vividly remember the rush of feelings stories like Little Red Riding Hood evoked. Fear, excitement, suspense, urgency, all of these emotions triggered a visceral reaction within me, awakening something that had lain dormant, waiting to be realized. It definitely made me want to write stories of my own. I enjoyed the darkness of the grim fairy tales, the irreverent disregard for the sensitivities of a young audience. Once upon a time, fairy tales were meant to frighten little children. They were fables that often divulged a hidden meaning, messages that may have been too complex for a young mind to fully comprehend in its entirety, but surely no less realized. The warning was clear in most of these stories — beware. They were filled with mysterious characters, evil villains, magic, fantasy and danger. The words fairy tale could be misleading, as many of these stories were chilling as well as thrilling.

I think we all have fond memories of the classic Red Riding Hood story antics:

“Oh my! What big eyes you have! Oh my! What big ears you have! Oh my! What big teeth you have!”

What child doesn’t avidly recall squealing with glee and only half feigned fright when the wicked wolf finally leaps into revealing his true nature and responds, “All the better to eat you with my dear!” Simply delicious.

A passionate scene from Catherine Hardwicke's Red Riding Hood.

Now Catherine Hardewicke of Twilight fame has chosen to present us a more mature version of Red Riding Hood. It looks dark, edgy, atmospheric and full of all the sexual undertones that were only metaphorically referenced in the original fairy tale. Make no mistake, this was always a tale that warned unwary girls of the dangers of falling into the lustful embrace of beguiling boys. Guard your morals and chastity valiantly! it cautioned. Will we now see for ourselves just how seductive the lure of the wolf can be? This re-imagined version of Little Red’s tale seems to have the cloak of innocence stripped away, and all the voluptuous sexuality of the story will be revealed for an adult audience.

The element of passion clearly evident in this version of the classic fairy tale Red Riding Hood.

Hardwicke, who I believe to be a master at capturing the nuances of restrained desire and lustful angst, has re-imagined this classic story for an adult audience. Just how far she will stretch the boundaries of the original will be interesting for me to find out as I am off to eagerly watch the film tomorrow. I’m curious as to how she will portray the wolf to us. It’s obvious many were not fans of the wolf in Wolfman, so will she give us a mythical wolf cloaked in mystery? Or will she reveal the wolf to us in all his terrible glory, bared for all the world to see and either marvel at or despise?

Beware the wolf.

I’m sure the movie will be hot, I’m sure it will be sexy, but will it be enough to satisfy and tantalize an audience? Or will our earliest memories of the original archetypes be too pervasive for us to escape and make it difficult to accept a new version that definitely isn’t for children? One thing is for certain, Catherine Hardwicke has cleverly captured the famously iconic vibrant red of Red Riding Hood’s cape. That color will become as firmly entrenched as the original fairy tale in our collective conscious, even if this new film fails to strike the right chords.

Lily by LM DeWalt

I just finished reading Lily by LM DeWalt and published by ireadiwrite Publishing, and let me tell you, this book ended before I was ready to say The End.

Lily is a tale about a lonely female vampire living in Oregon who longs for a release from the desolate isolation she faces each and every day of her immortal life. The problem is, her very nature means she must hide herself away, never allowing herself to feel what it would be like to have a relationship of any kind. After being abandoned by her maker who she had loved intensely both as a human and as a vampire, she has been a loner, never staying in one place very long. After a brief encounter with a human male in the apartment building where she had manged to live for two years — the longest amount of time she had ever stayed anywhere — Lily packs up her meager belongings and takes off. Finally tired of her hermit-like existence, she decides she will try and find others of her kind. Perhaps she would be able to find a place where she could belong, if only for a little while.

Before long, Lily finds herself not only expected by a loving vampire family, but also meets the love of her life. Could all this mean the end of her lonely existence? Tentative yet hopeful, Lily embraces the love and warmth of her vampire family. Not wanting to think about tomorrow or consequences, Lily also indulges herself in a romantic love that cannot be. All to soon, Lily realizes her past has the power to destroy her future. And all too soon, Lily finds herself in a fight for her life and all those she loves.

As soon as I started to read this book, I felt Lily’s keen sense of isolation and loneliness and despair. She is a character that I liked right away, and she reminded me of both Lestat with her world weary nature, and Louis in the ways in which she made her nature palatable to her conscience. I felt this keen yearning to know Lily completely, but the author unfurls every nuance of her character slowly, leading you willingly along on Lily’s journey. At times I couldn’t help the feeling of foreboding that crept over me, things felt deceptively easy and so normal, but I kept waiting for that proverbial other shoe to drop. But it also had me chuckling. I, for one, will chuckle whenever I think of coffee or a park bench. And it also has moments where you will say, “Awww.”

It was refreshing to read a vampire story from a female protagonist’s perspective. The only thing I found challenging was suspending my disbelief long enough to believe in love at first sight. I’ve discovered I’ve become cynical in this regard, unfortunately. This cynicism just made me want to believe in it all the more, if only to prove to myself that I haven’t become too jaded in my old age. When have any of us encountered true love? The kind of love that loves unconditionally and accepts you for exactly who and what you are, flaws and all, no matter what they may be? This book asks you for a moment to imagine what it would be like to bare your true self and leave everything exposed. That kind of vulnerability is very frightening, but empowering as well. It will make you want to take a closer look at all the important relationships in your life.

The question of nature vs. nurture also arose for me. Lily was still so young in a vampire sense, and unsure of herself. She was so much like an abandoned child who out of necessity must learn to fend for herself, but desperately needed the bond of love and family. Would she have been more confident and more immune to the feelings of loneliness and isolation if her maker had been a better nurturer who gently guided her? Or was this sensitivity just her nature?

Lily brings the suspense like a thriller, but it is also a sweet story about finding true love and finally finding a family to call your own. It’s about the bonds of trust and loyalty, and moving beyond the things that hurt us deeply and embracing our future. It has endearing characters, rivalry, and a villainous villain you will absolutely love to loathe. You will also be posed with the inevitable question; but you will have to read the book to find out what that question is.

Plain Jane by Cristyn West

Right out of the gate this book creeped me out. Being a brunette myself, the title alone was enough to scare me! This was a seriously good book.
Words like unhinged, grotesque, shocking, intriguing, and macabre were spinning through my head as I read the stunning and suspenseful pages. In this book, the lines between profiler and killer severely blur constantly. Cristyn West keeps you guessing, “Just WHO is the killer?” And just when you think you’ve figured it out, she takes you through to another labyrinthine twist.
I found myself wondering, “Just who is watching you?” This was a creepy, gritty, horrifying and shocking ride. Right until the last page I found myself exclaiming, “No way!” This book will make you jumpy, especially if you’re a brunette. You’ll find yourself checking your doors and windows, and looking over your shoulder. You’ll catch yourself watching everyone around you, wondering…

The suspense is drawn out to the last drop, right up until you discover the shocking truth! To catch a killer, just how far would you go? Read Plain Jane: Brunettes Beware and you will discover that there’s a fine line between madness and genius!