Tome Thursday: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

 

Hello everyone!

 

After taking a mini break right after the Easter holidays and skipping Tuesday, I'm back once again with my next blog post installment, and boy is it a funny one.

 

See, I was supposed to read this book, like, literal ages ago.

 

It was given to me as a gift by one of my best friends, but one thing led to another and, for some reason still unknown to me, I managed to misplace it.

 

I KNOW. Shame.

 

I found it again this week though, after being off-work for a bit and having the time to really clean some stuff, so I managed to unearth it, dust it off, and figure, why not?

 

It's reasonably short, in comparison to the author's other works, so it's a very quick read, and there's nothing too complicated about it.

 

I'm talking, of course, about GRRM, and his three-story collecting A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.

 

Tome Thursday: Shadows of the Dark Realm

 

Hello everyone!

 

And welcome to the last "regular" book review until 2024, because as of next week, we begin our Christmas-themed extravaganza which has seen us through many a-holiday season here on this blog, of course.

 

Hey, let a girl live. I LOVE me some Christmas!

 

But I also love picking up new and exciting stories, too.

 

Tonight's choice is one of them, although it still has some ways to go before it can be perfectly polished and on par with the greats like Tolkien and Jordan.

 

Nevertheless, it's good. It drew me in and made me want to figure out where the heck it was going, and how it was going to end, and definitely gave me some twists along the way as I read it.

 

I was also pleasantly surprised to be approached by the author who so graciously sent me an ARC of his book in the first place. Doesn't matter for how long I've been doing this, it still humbles me immensely when people reach out like that. I'm here for it!

 

And so without further ado: Shadows of the Dark Realm, by Tyler Edwards.

 

Men in Kilts: Clans & Tartans

 

"Here's to long memories and friendship."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Despite the fact that the finale of Men of Kilts aired over this weekend, I'm an episode behind with it all because I took a bit of a break in between, which means that this week and the next will still be Scottish-coloured on the blog.

 

But when has that ever been a bad thing, am I right?

 

Our two favourite Scotsmen get themselves into even more trouble and hilarious situations just by existing, and it's one of those things that you really need to watch for yourself to believe. 

 

I mean, sure it's for the show and most of it is scripted, but these two manage to make it look as natural as it comes, which certainly amps up the appeal if you ask me.

 

I do, however, digress.

 

Right before the finale, we dived in to have a better look at just what even started this desire to learn more about Scotland and its history - the clans.

 

Clans & Tartans is up for debate next.

 

Tome Thursday: The Legend of Lady MacLaoch

Hello everyone!

With the weather having changed (FINALLY) to something a little more manageable in the sense that it's not two hundred degrees outside every time I stick my nose out, I finally feel like I can actually function normally again.

I mean, I like summer, don't get me wrong, but I also like it when it doesn't try to roast me on the spot like it's been trying to do.

But then of course the downside here is that we may not GET any more real summer from now on, which is a bit of a bummer.

You can't have it all!

But maybe you CAN if you're descendant of some ancient Scottish clan or Viking-inspired seafarers, because then you just MIGHT stumble over a curse that's been hanging over someone's head for generations, you CAN try to lift it, and end up living your happily ever after!

Sounds like something you might read more about?

Then I encourage you to pick up The Legend of Lady MacLaoch. It's got all of the above, and more!

Talkie Tuesday: Jumanji The Next Level

"I swear man, if we survive, I am gonna kill you!"

Hello everyone!

Sadly, there was no Outlander this previous weekend as the show has apparently decided to leave us hanging (literally) to see the aftermath of the shocking revelation that was the end of The Ballad of Roger Mac.

Now, I'm a book reader, so I know what happens, and I've managed to gnaw my way through the re-read of The Fiery Cross as well, meaning I know which big points the series will attempt to hit going forward.

But STILL.

So while there is nothing to report on the Outlander front, I've been watching the occasional movie when time allowed.

Not much, you see, but just enough to keep interested in all the stuff happening on the big screen.

And while I may be behind on several more popular releases, I figured it couldn't hurt to cover one that had action, adventure, and a Jack Black-sized dollop of humour.

Jumanji: The Next Level awaits!

Game of Thrones: The Iron Throne

"They say every time a Targaryen is born, the gods flip a coin.
And the world holds its breath."

Hello everyone!

It's a sort of bitter-sweet feeling to go about typing this kind of blog post for the very last time, because, as we all know - there will be no more Game of Thrones to look forward to. 

At least, not in the shape we've been used to since 2011.

In some ways, as a lot of the fans would say, it might even be for the best given the response to the last season, but at the same time, this show has been such a staple in our lives for so long that it's hard to understand it isn't coming back.

I can't even begin to imagine what fans of Supernatural are going through!

But anyway, regardless which camp you're in (happy fan or outraged fan, that is), this Sunday's series finale brought ... some kind of closure, I suppose.

Mostly on a lot of illogical storylines.

Let's sit back and take a look at The Iron Throne - and listen to the iconic theme song. One last time.

Game of Thrones: The Bells

"A Targaryen alone in the world is a terrible thing ..."

Hello everyone!

Still with me here? 

Hearing church bells ringing and thinking you need to take cover from a massive, pissed off dragon?

Or are you looking at the viral vitriol and dubious commentary wars and thinking "this season has gone down the gutter because the fans are now batshit"?

I hear you on both counts.

Actually, I hear you on ALL counts, because: my sentiments exactly.

After the third and fourth episode, I wasn't really holding my breath that the fifth was going to make things any better, execution-wise. The rushed season feels, well, rushed. So really, I went in with a lot of warnings from all around (looking at you, friends!) and emotionally detached.

I was pretty sure there would be great moments (Game of Thrones DOES have those), not-so-great ones (also Game of Thrones territory), illogical ones, and completely nutty ones.

The Bells was all of the above, so might as well put on your helmets and take cover.

Game of Thrones: The Last of the Starks

"We have won the Great War. Now we will win the Last War."

Hello everyone!

We are now officially in the very last leg of this Game of Thrones season, and I have to say that fans are beginning to see just what a shortened season has caused in the overall plot and development. 

Not that this wasn't obvious on occasions prior to this week's episode, but it's usually when everything really comes to a head that you see whether a show can sink or swim.

It seems like Game of Thrones is beginning to slowly sink, which is sad news for something that's been so epic since the beginning.

Was it all bad? Of course not. It IS still Game of Thrones, after all.

But unfortunately it also wasn't all good, either, and that seems to be the standard by which people in general look at these episodes. I have to admit I'm one of them, too. There's a lot of things to sink your teeth into on television these days, but truly remarkable ones remain scattered and divided.

With now only two episodes to go, and five promising to be a smackdown of epic proportions, let's take our leave of the North, shall we? The Last of the Starks is basically a relocation.

Game of Thrones: The Long Night

"We must fight together now ... or die."

Hello everyone!

We made it. Sort of. 

The Night King came and we mostly made it, so I suppose the day after is the time to count our losses, look and see just who it was that survived to fight another day, and figure out what in the seven hells went wrong.

Is anyone saying 'but nothing went wrong?'

HaHA. Sweet summer children.

A lot of things went wrong.

Still, at the end of the day, it was a cinematografic 80 minutes that HBO dished out for us, and for that I am truly thankful. With only three more episodes to go, it's coming to an end of an era, so I'm feeling bitter-sweet.

That being said, however, everyone is entitled to their own opinions. Or misopinions.

So make sure to grip that dragonglass, and have a torch ready. The Long Night is upon us.

Game of Thrones: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

"We must fight together now ... or die."

Hello everyone!

Winter is here. 

No, I mean, it's LEGIT HERE.

Not many people have missed the second episode of the Game of Thrones final season this weekend/Monday (depending where you live), so I'm going to bet that pretty much everyone knows what I'm talking about .

After all, there's really only one Night King.

And he means business.

With basically a third of the season already over (ZOINKS!) you best believe that it's not going to ease up any time soon.

There's too many people still alive, after all.

Brace yourselves and sound the horns; A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has arrived.

Game of Thrones: Winterfell

"We must fight together now ... or die."

Hello everyone!

IT'S HERE.

WE MADE IT.

Almost two years after season seven wrapped up, season eight of Game of Thrones has finally landed.

And boy, is it promising to be a whopper.

We've only really seen the introductory first hour to the last six episodes HBO will give us of this narration (the prequels and sequels and whatever else they cook up don't count at the moment), but already, things are gearing up. An exposition of a premiere, we've pretty much set it all.

How did Gandalf put it?

The board is set. The pieces are moving.

It's time to call the banners and pull out your dragonglass. Winter is here.

Talkie Tuesday: Love on the Menu

"Love is the number one ingredient in any dish."

Hello everyone!

You're probably wondering if I'll ever watch anything not Hallmark-related in the near future.

I promise, I do have some other movies lined up! But the thing is, Hallmark has somehow reorganised their channel so that they literally have something for every season at this point, and out of those, I generally watch about half their movies. Not always and definitely not all of them, but certainly a lot!

Still, this blog post is a last huzzah, in a way, for movies for the next little while.

Because starting next Tuesday, April 16th, I'll be doing weekly Game of Thrones reviews, for the very last time.

That's right, the final season is almost here, guys!!!

So before we strap on our swords and grab the dragonglass we need to fight off the White Walkers and the Night King, let's try something tasty on for size first as a sort of goodbye, shall we?

Love on the Menu is exactly right for that.

Saturday Snippet: The Final Season

xx

*image not mine

Game of Thrones: The Dragon and the Wolf

"The Great War is here."

Hello everyone!

Well, we made it. Yet another season over and we all still seem to be standing. Okay, sadly, Thoros isn't with us anymore, and lamentably we said bye-bye to a lot of nameless extras who happened to tag along in just the right places to be conveniently killed, but you know what I mean. 

We're almost at the hail Mary for this show!

Game of Thrones has consistently delivered, despite perhaps not having the exact political bangs going on as it did while Martin was still actively participating and the episodes were based off his actual books. Which, to be perfectly honest, is not the show's fault. The producers can't be expected to wait FOREVER until the guy finally decides how he's going to untangle the mess he created for himself.

Also, he's still around, you know, giving commentary. It's not like it's not approved.

But in any event, The Dragon and the Wolf was an episode EVERYONE looked forward to - and pretty much everyone was stoked about by the time it ended.

Game of Thrones: Beyond the Wall

"The Great War is here."

Hello everyone!

Even at the seaside, I can't resist the lure that is Game of Thrones. I mean, come on, who could?

Definitely not me. 

Besides, there's something incredibly poetic about watching a big-ass dragon torch anything and everything in front of him while I'm sitting on the large terrace listening to the sea on the beach not too far away.

But I digress.

The penultimate episode of the season left us with one big-ass WHAT just as the episode ended (and you can see I love the term big-ass; I'll be using it a lot when it comes to the dragons, sorry-not-sorry!), but also with a sense of ... hey, guy ain't fooling around no more.

Beyond the Wall promised a lot - and delivered.

Game of Thrones: Eastwatch

"The Great War is here."

Hello everyone!

Can I just say one thing?

Oh.

My.

GOD.

SERIOUSLY.

Once again, some of my friends have complained nothing much happened in this week's Game of Thrones episode. I'm not entirely sure we're watching the same show anymore ... EVERYTHING HAPPENED THIS WEEK.

It isn't about the battles. It's not about who dies. It's about the people still living and breathing who're moving around the chessboard, and the declarations and revelations that keep hitting one after another and make me feel like I'm in one of those amusement parks trying to hold on for all it's worth. The episode titled 'Eastwatch' was EVERYTHING. And here's what happened.

Game of Thrones: The Spoils of War

"The Great War is here."

Hello everyone!

Thankfully, our initial heatwave seems to be over at the moment, although looking at these stormclouds that seem to be gathering I'm apprehensive for quite a different reason this time around.

But anyway. 

Making sure I don't miss my weekly Game of Thrones blog, I come bearing gifts, which is the review for the fourth episode of the season, The Spoils of War! And dang, we're already past the halfway point now, only three more to go.

How fast does time fly, right?

And man, if you just look at these episodes, it's like we can never get enough, which is probably the point.

After all, there is only one Iron Throne.

Game of Thrones: The Queen's Justice

"The Great War is here."

Hello everyone!

Let me first tell you that I feel for the poor chicken which usually ends up in the cooking pot. I'm about the same right now and it's not even that late yet, but just sitting still I feel like I'm about to melt into a puddle on the floor. 

Summer has DEFINITELY got us in its grip, and will still for the next two weeks or so they say, so I desperately need some winter to cool off.

That pun was totally intended.

Anyway, after watching this latest episode of Un Passo Dal Cielo yesterday, I sat down to go through Game of Thrones as well, because ... well, because I couldn't resist, especially with that epic meeting in the works.

Let's move into The Queen's Justice, shall we?

Game of Thrones: Stormborn

"The Great War is here."

Hello everyone!

It's time for episode two! 

And boy, what an episode it was. Considering the fact that I've had some of my friends complain, or at least mutter, that the premiere of the show wasn't necessarily as explosive as one might expect from a series which keeps its viewers hanging for a full year before returning, well, let me just say Stormborn more than made up for it.

We have all the major players coming onto the board, whether directly or indirectly, some loose plotholes are being filled up, and all I'm still waiting for now is another Ed Sheeran song cover!

He IS going to be including one for the season seven official soundtrack, right?

Anyway.

As is usual for my reviews, links to the previous episode(s) will be found at the end of the blog post, so you can refresh your memory with those before jumping straight into Stormborn.

Game of Thrones: Dragonstone

"The Great War is here."

Hello everyone!

Welcome, yet again, to another summer filled with Game of Thrones reviews and recaps. 

As I've done last year, I'm eschewing movies in favour of this television show because, SERIOUSLY, is there anyone (beside my sister) who hasn't seen this yet?

This Sunday marked the drop of the show's sevent season, a much-anticipated and highly speculated episode as well as the penultimate season of the show in general, since season eight is to be the last, during which we will finally, FINALLY, see the conclusion and who gets to sit on the bloody Iron Throne.

No pun intended.

So without further ado and without adding more to this introduction than is needed, let's jump right into the premiere, aptly named Dragonstone!