2017 saw a movie that never really got much attention, even though it should have. You Were Never Really Here is about a traumatized veteran, who is not afraid of violence. His job is to track down missing girls. When a job spins out of control, Joe's nightmares overtake him as a conspiracy is uncovered leading to what may be his death or his awakening.
 
Joe, played by Joaquin Phoenix, is a man who does what he needs to, providing he is paid. He has a job to do, and it is to track down missing girls who were taken in the name of sex trafficking. Most of the time he may not be successful in getting the girl, but he does exact vengeance when it is asked of him.
 
Joe, throughout the movie, does have some obvious issues. He takes care of his aged mother, and he remembers childhood trauma that causes him to risk his own life almost every night. There isn’t much given about his past, but the audience does see that there is one incident when he is working with either the military or after, that has caused him to take on the role of a paid savior.
 
This movie is a slow burn. It begins in a hotel room and ends in a diner. There are scenes which seem to be placed just to confuse the audience as to what is really going on, but overall it is a movie in something of the same vein as Leon: The Professional. Joe is sent to find and rescue Nina, the daughter of an elected official. Her father finds out who has taken his daughter and is understandably upset when he finds it is the man he is working on a campaign for. The man has been so taken with Nina that when she is rescued, she is immediately retrieved, setting off events that cause death to those Joe loves, and causing him to do what he has learned to do best, kill.
 
This movie was slow and weird, but there were several scenes that were interesting. One scene is Joe laying next to a man he has been fighting with. They are both laying on the floor, one dying and one exhausted from the fight. A song comes on and they both sing softly to it, holding hands as the man dies. There are several other intense scenes which makes one question the sanity of Joe, or what his plans are. He is searching for something, and in the end, like Leon had Matilda, Joe has Nine to save him from himself.
 
You Were Never Really Here is not a bad movie, but I don’t think everyone will enjoy it. It is a thought provoking movie, and for me, it made me wonder once again, about man’s inhumanity to man.

Before I review this movie, I'd like to apologize to all of my readers for the lack of posts these last few weeks. I was on break from work and unfortunately I spent most of that time sick. I am back to work, but I am also feeling much healthier, which means back to real life and all work. I am working on two books, one I am sending queries out for, and the other I am writing. Sometimes my writing has to take a backseat as I have papers to grade, but I am down to three classes this semester and I feel that I've managed my grading time well. So, without waiting any longer, here is my review of Strangerland. You may not have heard of this movie, and now you can read my review before deciding on if you want to or not.
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Strangerland starring Nicole Kidman, Joseph Fiennes, and Hugo Weaving, is a movie about a family who has moved to a rural area in the outback (is there any other area?) and try to escape the doldrums of this new life.
 
The family, of which Kidman and Fiennes are the parents, have been forced to move to this new town because of the actions of their teenage daughter. They have two children, their daughter, Lily, and their son, Tom. These two children are precarious and I found them incredibly annoying. The couple have some serious issues in their marriage and they seem to be on their way to divorce, as the audience sees they don’t sleep in the same bed, and they don’t seem to be on the same page when their children have issues.
 
In the movie Kidman seems to be a desperate mother, while Fiennes is a distant father. Kidman walks through the movie trying to figure out her daughter and save both of her children, while Fiennes not only continues on with his regular day, but he doesn’t see the trauma he is causing his wife to endure. In the end, this family seems broken, and there is no way to fix them or put them back together.
 
I have to say the most interesting characters were Kidman and Weaving, as they both go through a lot in the movie. The movie itself however, wasn’t a very engaging one. As the family goes through a huge trauma nothing about them, or what they are going through, falls strongly with the viewer. There are issues that don’t make them interesting, and I couldn’t feel anything but blah for them. I wanted to be more interested in what they were dealing with, and I wanted to feel something about what was happening to them, especially since they were dealing with the possibility of losing their children. I just didn’t feel sympathy or happiness or anything for them.
 
The ending of this movie didn’t settle well with me either. It left the movie unfinished, which isn’t horrible, but it is a little overdone, as a lot of movies seem to end with a mystery still left to be solved. I wanted it to have an actual ending. I wanted this movie to give me answers, but instead it created more questions.
 
While I enjoyed the acting of the top actors, they weren’t enough to keep me interested, nor were they a reason to watch this movie.
 
My recommendation is to skip it. Don’t even waste time watching it on streaming, it isn’t worth the time.

For the book Final Girls bu Riley Sager, I was torn about reading it. On the cover I have it has a quote by Stephen King, "If you liked Gone Girl, you'll like this." I almost didn't buy this book, only because of that quote. See, I hated Gone Girl, hated it with a passion. I hated it because there was only one character to like and he wasn't int he book enough. Otherwise, it was overrated and not at all interesting. Plus, I don't mind a twist, but I don't want to read an entire book of lies (which almost half of Gone Girl was). However, this isn't about Gone Girl, this is about Final Girls.

This book revolves around Quincy, a young woman who ten years earlier survived one of the most horrific experiences of her life. A night that was supposed to be fun turned into a night of betrayal and tragedy. In that night, Quincy and five of her friends, including her best friend, Janelle, were staying at a cabin. At the end of the night, only Quincy survived. Now, years later Quincy is pert of a group of three girls called the "Final Girls" all surviving a night of horrific tragedy, where several others were killed and they were the ones to survive. Suddenly, the original "Final Girl" is found dead of a supposed suicide, and Quincy's life is dramatically changed when the other "Final Girl" Sam shows up wanting to talk. What does Sam want to talk about? Not the death of Lisa, no, she wants to help Quincy remember what happened that night at Pine Cottage.

This book started out strong, and for a while kept me going, wanting to find out what happened to all of the girls and why Lisa, the strongest of the three, would kill herself after all of this time had passed since her tragedy. All three girls, Lisa, Sam, and Quincy, had been in a situation where they had become a "Final Girl," and in fact Lisa is the one who came up with the name. I didn't start getting frustrated with this book until Sam starts pushing Quincy, and her maybe Fiance, Jeff, keeps telling her that she is fine. How could anyone thing she was fine, and how could he have been so blind to what was happening to her? Sam, on the other hand, was too pushy and her personality was so abrasive that it started to wear on me.

I, throughout the book, also found Quincy to be too much of a pushover. I don't know how I would react if I had survived what she had gone through, but for me, I didn't think she was realistically written at certain points in the book. I found the younger Quincy, the one in the flashbacks, to be almost the same as the older Quincy, as if the tragic events of ten years earlier didn't affect her, but there was no telling how she was dealing, or how she did deal, other than she was put on Xanax.  This to me, seemed unrealistic. I doubt that she would just find Xanax to be the cure, and that she would show other destructive behaviors. However, I did the book and the final twist at the end.

One other thing that bothered me about this book, was the time it took to develop anything. There was so much in between the first and last scene that I felt a lot of it was filler. It was almost as if Quincy was standing in a room, just spinning around, and that was what the reader was seeing. I would have liked a little more involvement from the outside characters, a little more to make me feel something deeper, some sense of urgency or, well, anything. As with other books I have read recently, the only character that stood out was Sam, she was well described, and I could see her each time she appeared, often disheveled and awkward. None of the other characters stood out to me, and I didn't even get one bit at the end because I couldn't remember it being described much in the beginning.

Of course, this doesn't mean I disliked the book. I was thrown off by the ending, and not expecting it at all, and it really made the book much more interesting. It was something that I didn't see coming at all, and was happy to have the surprise, especially when most of the book I've read recently were obvious where they were headed.

I do recommend this. I would love to be able to give it a strong recommendation, but can't because of the the slow parts and the fact that none of the characters were really developed (Jeff was super flat).

Have you ever read a book where every character is the same? If not, read Vendetta by Iris Johansen, because every character is the exact same character, male and female. The synopsis from amazon makes it sound a lot more interesting than it was:

With his dying breath, Carl Venable, head of the CIA task force on terrorism and Jude Brandon’s final link to terrorist ringleader Max Huber, gives Brandon a mandate: keep his daughter, Rachel, safe at any cost. But Rachel Venable has a shocking, twisted past of her own, one that comes rushing back after her medical clinic in Guyana is attacked by Huber―the same man who murdered her father and kept her imprisoned for months.
Brandon and Catherine Ling, Rachel’s longtime ally and fierce protector, are determined to keep Rachel out of danger, but she knows that it’s impossible to stay hidden when Max Huber wants you dead.
As Rachel and Brandon race against the clock to bring Huber down before he can orchestrate a disaster that will lay waste to half the country, they also fight a growing attraction to each other – an attraction that could prove just as dangerous as Huber himself.

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway, and while it says it is an "Eve Duncan Novel" it is not as there is no character named Eve Duncan, so I am hoping that there is a fix in the cover before this novel is released in October.

While the book synopsis makes this sound like an interesting book, this is a flat book. All of the characters are exactly the same, with the same types of speech patterns, and the same physical attributes or movements. I couldn't get involved in any of the characters because they were all blunt and forward, and they ended up blending into each other. I would have liked at least one character who wasn't trying or pretending to be strong. In fact the most interesting character was Huber, because he had childish outbursts, which made him stand out from other characters.

Also, this book is a little long, and it took a while to get through. I wasn't interested enough and some of the scenes could have been deleted. I just wasn't a fan.
 
I think that, to be honest, I am not a fan of Iris Johansen's writing, so I will most likely not read another one of her books.

The Loft is a 2014 movie that I had wanted to see in the theater. The movie revolves around five married men who join together to secretly share a loft. This loft provides a place of their own where they can take their extramarital affairs if they so choose. One day the unthinkable happens, and they find a body in their loft. They must decide what to do, and which of them might be the murderer.
 
This movie, when I first saw the trailer, looked like it might be an interesting horror film. It is actually more of a suspense movie, with a little extra infidelity in it. None of the men are really good guys as they all either want to or do cheat on their wives. The movie does however start with a shock as we open on a car being struck by something heavy, which one can only presume to be a body due to the tone of the movie. This beginning also sets up the overall dark tone of the film itself.
 
Of the five men the leader, or the one who provides the loft, is Vincent. Vincent is a man who doesn’t seem to care for anyone, his wife, his friends, or the women he sleeps with. Marty is a drunk who tends to do whatever he wants, and say whatever he wants, when he is drinking. Chris tries to believe he is a good guy, but he is like every other guy, although his wife doesn’t make things any easier as she doesn’t seem to like him, or any of his friends. Phil is a man who plays until the day he marries, and he really does play until the DAY he is married. Lastly, there is Luke, a man who seems to have his life together but who also seems to have a secret, which everyone thinks is his attraction to other men.
 
Throughout most of this movie it goes round and round, showing all of the bad deeds done by the men. Each one of them confesses to a problem they have had, and each one shows how little they care for others. This movie didn’t have many likeable people in it. The only one any of the audience could feel in the least bit sorry for is the character of Sara. But, to talk about her too much is to give away a lot of the story.
 
There was suspense, as we could wonder throughout who the killer was, and who the victim was. Also the depth into which the men go to live their lives as degenerates, it makes none of them likeable characters. In the end we do want to know what is going on, but it is almost a little anti-climactic. The story behind it was a little tedious, and finding out that some of the men get what they deserve while some of the others don’t was a little frustrating.
 
This was not a movie with a happy ending, and when it did end I felt bad for Luke. If you do end up watching it then you’ll understand why. His character was very sad, and he even though in the end he was not a great guy, just like his buddies, he did leave us with something to feel.

Recently I had the pleasure to interview author Shirley B. Garrett. Dr. Garrett has published several novels, a self-help and several in the mystery/chick lit genre. Information about her books, social media and website, and upcoming events will be at the end of this interview.

So, let's get to know Dr. Garrett!

What sets your books apart from others?
     Strong characterization helps to make my books unique. Because I have a doctorate in psychology and over twenty-six years of experience providing mental health and substance abuse treatment, I'm good at writing. I try to help my readers understand what drives each of my characters. (I know this makes me sound as old as Zombie, cemetery dirt. Not true).

Why do you write in the genres that you do?
     I write self-help because I'm still trying to save the world. (I know it's corny, but I can't help myself.) I'm planning a series of short 99-cent eBooks on different topics like confidence and boundaries. I want them to be affordable to the people who need them. I'm writing the gritty, Charlie Stone, crime thriller series because as a therapist, I understand the dark underside of the driving forces of the human psyche. After I write a chapter about the antagonist in this series, I often feel the need to take a break and wash my hands. The Hot Flash series is fun to write, and the four Divas, Phoenix, Gina, Latishia, and Kat practically explode onto the screen while I'm writing them. Any woman who goes through this difficult period of life needs to be able to laugh about the challenges it presents. The interesting thing about Hot Flash Divas is both the guys and gals in my critique groups loved it.

If you could write in any genre what would you write and why?
     Interesting that you should ask this question. I completed the first chapter of a cozy mystery that will have a paranormal flavor. That's all I'm revealing at this point.

How many hours a day do you write?
     Four to six hours a day.
     Most people who run a successful business must learn to manage their time in an effective way. In general, I write daily and to some degree on weekends. If I'm not having lunch with friends, grocery shopping, doing laundry, or attending an art class, I'm writing. I schedule activities each day to get out of the house and away from the computer for a few hours. Unless my husband is busy with a project, I stop when he arrives home and spend quality time with him. Writing is my profession, not a hobby.

Do you have a set place where you write? Can you describe it if you do?
     When I closed my four-room therapy office, I compressed my office into an extra bedroom in my house. I have a large double window that faces the front lawn and flowerbeds. I use a MAC desktop with a large monitor, an ergonomic keyboard, and wireless mouse to reduce the strain of long hours of writing. My chair is adjustable and supports my lower back. On the desk area to my left, which is in front of the window sits Pookie's basket. She's my bibliocat and makes sure I take breaks by standing in front of my monitor, purring.
     I don't go to coffee shops to write. Hunching over over a laptop while I try to tune out a plethora of sounds and distractions isn't conducive to my writing. I like my comfortable, quiet, ergonomic office, with the great view. I do take an iPad Mini and a small keyboard with me when I travel. I wrote many of the Florida scenes in Hot Flash Divas on location.

Does writing energize or exhaust you?
     Writing is an energy that excites me. It almost flows like a force, unless I've been at it for too many hours or I've forgotten to eat. Editing is more exhausting. (Personally I agree with Shirley here. I think writing is easier than editing and I often feel exhausted after editing. The only reason way I am tired after writing is if I am emotionally exhausted).

What is the best money you have spent as a writer?
     I hired a professional editor. I'd edited my first book so many times; I couldn't have seen a mistake if it had been in bold print. My beta readers caught some problems. After all that, my publisher corrected more mistakes. Even best-selling authors hire editors. Using an editor may give a writer the advantage of catching an agent or publisher's interest. If self-publishing—it's a must. Poorly written self-published books make it hard on the authors who produce quality work to be taken seriously in the world of publishing.

Have you ever had writer's block?
     No. There are several reasons why. First, I write almost every day, so I don't stop the creative flow. Second, as I go about I watch people, listen to conversations, and check out places to use in my stories. The third way I avoid this curse is by writing two to four books at one time. (Yep, I know that sounds insane.) When I hit a place where my path isn't clear in one book, I switch to another one. (She is one lucky lady here)

What about reader's block?
     I've never had it and pray I never do. I love to read and tend to have a print book and an audiobook going at the same time. I always make sure the books are by different authors, so I don't mingle the plots.

What other writer's are you friends with and how have they helped you become a better writer?
     I'm a member of Sister's in Crime—Atlanta Chapter, North Alabama Mystery Writers (NAMW), Huntsville Literary Association (HLA) Critique Group, Coffee and Critique, and Coffee Tree Writers. I learn by doing critiques as well as receiving the feedback from these talented writers. The two most well- known authors who have helped me with their advice are Baron Birtcher, who writes the Mike Travis series and John DeDakis, who writes the Lark Chadwick Mystery series.

What was an early experience where you learned language had power?
     As a counselor, I had many patients tell me when they were about to relapse on alcohol or drugs, reenter a bad relationship, or needed to make a major decision, that they would hear my voice in their heads reminding them of something I told them in a therapy session. Some would think, "What would Dr. Garrett do?" That was when I realized the power of words and tried to use them wisely.

How did publishing your first novel change your process of writing? Or did it?
     My first book was a self-help book titled Stop the Craziness: Simple Life Solutions. I used a conversational style similar to the way I spoke to people during therapy sessions. Remembering my patient's frustrations with self-help books that go on and on about the problems, I made mine a solution-oriented book that got to the point. I used call-out boxes to emphasize the most important points and cartoons to give a visual of each chapter topic. Also, I provided a simple intervention at the end of each chapter to help the reader improve his or her life.
     Fiction is entirely different. My writing style in Deadly Compulsion, a crime thriller, is graphic and intense. In Hot Flash Divas, a chick lit novel, my style is poignant and humorous.

For aspiring writers what information or advice would you give them?
     Write first, edit second. Some folks are plotters and write a detailed outline. Others write by the seat of their pants and let the story take them where it will. I'm a bit of both. I do a loose plot to make sure I hit the correct story arc to avoid a saggy middle, but I still let the story and the characters take me where they choose.

In your opinion, what are the most important magazines for aspiring writers to subscribe to?
     Writer's Digest and Poets and Writers.

What is your favorite under-appreciated novel?
     Dollface, a thriller written by J.D. Frost, which was published by Ardent Writer Press. James is a member of North Alabama Mystery Writers, and he can write a chase scene that puts you in the vehicle.

If you could tell your younger aspiring writer self anything, what would it be?
     The same things I told myself when I closed my private counseling practice in 2014 and started writing full-time. I was a neophyte. I knew how to run my business and how to use my knowledge and skills to help people get better. I knew nothing about the publishing business. Here's the plan that I used.
     Commit to go to my home office and write every day.
     Learn my craft. Read books and attend webinars about my new profession.
     Take an online college course on writing fiction.
     I used three different critique groups, and eventually started my own, North Alabama Mystery Writers (NAMW) to hone my skills and to give and receive valuable feedback.
     Visit writer's conferences and book fairs to learn more about writing, meet authors, agents, and publishers. Pitch my books.
     Attend Toastmasters to become a proficient speaker. I needed to communicate well while pitching a book, speaking on a panel, doing an interview, or giving a keynote address.
     Never give up.
     Accept rejection as part of the process.
     Keep writing while querying agents, especially if it's a series. Don't let the momentum stop.

About Dr. Garrett's books:

Stop the Craziness: Simple Life Solutions is a fun to read toolbox of 50 simple solutions to help you improve your life.
 
Deadly Compulsion is the first in the Charlie Stone crime thriller series.
     Dr. Charlene Stone, Ph.D., is called in for her first psychological profile consultation for the Huntsville, Alabama Police Department. Middle-aged, alcoholic men are being seduced in nightclubs and lured to their deaths. They are found naked, beaten, and mutilated in their beds. The crime scenes are neat and organized. Within weeks, the police discover a second and then a third victim. The killer's time between murders is shortening. To complicate matters, Charlie is suffering from insomnia, nightmares and sleepwalking episodes.  Her attraction to Detective Ryan Roberts adds to her emotional turmoil.
Due to mounting circumstantial evidence, Charlie finds she is a suspect and banned from the investigation. She puts her life in danger during an unsanctioned attempt to clear her name and to stop the brutal murders. Will Charlie catch the killer or discover her worst fear?
 
Hot Flash Divas is the first in the Hot Flash Series.
     Phoenix O'Leary faces the worst year of her life as a psychologist. Her father dies of cancer in September. On Christmas Day, her funeral director husband, Todd, asks for a divorce. She knew he was a buffet-loving, recliner slug, but didn't suspect that he was a liar and cheater. Her friends, the Divas sweep in to help Phoenix cope with her grief, reconstruct her life, and learn to have fun as a single lady. Gina Borgiano is her best friend and a single, Italian, Catholic, divorce attorney. She represents Phoenix when Todd files for divorce. Latishia Snide, built like a five-foot basketball with braids, navigates life on three-inch designer heels. A successful loan officer, she helps Phoenix finance a new home in Huntsville. Kat Wang, a Chinese-American nurse, helps Phoenix's see to her medical needs. The mishaps and adventures the Divas encounter along the way produce tears of sadness, hot flashes, laughter that stresses the limits of their cranky bladders and a sprinkling of zesty adult romance.
 
Upcoming news: Thunderchild Publishing has signed a contract to publish the next books in each series: Deadly Lesson and Hot Flash Romance. They will be released in 2017.

Where you can find Dr. Garrett's books:

Website: http://www.ourworlds.net/thunderchild/
Email:  thunderchild38@gmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thunderchildpublishing

You too can follow Dr. Garrett on these platforms:
Website: http://www.ShirleyBGarrett.com
Email: shirleybgarrett.com.
Facebook.com/ShirleyBGarrett
Twitter.com/ShirleyBGarrett
Author page on goodreads.com

Dr. Garrett is available for interviews, book signings, review copies of her books, and speaking engagements. Check out Dr. Garrett's blog on her website for more insight into her characters. 

Upcoming events where you can meet Dr. Garrett:
     Dr. Garrett will be one of the panelists at the Decatur book fair on Labor Day weekend. Location: The Decatur Library , 215 Sycamore Street, Decatur, Georgia. Her books will be available in the Sisters in Crime Bookstore.

Hopefully, I have introduced you to a new author, and if you already knew about Dr. Garrett, hopefully she gave you some helpful and interesting information.

A big thanks to Dr. Shirley Garrett for answering these questions!