Dracula Untold Movie Review

Title: Dracula Untold

Year: 2014

Time: 1hr & 32min

Rating: 5/5

After seeing the previews on TV and in the theatre I practically begged my father to take me to see the movie and he complied on the day it came out. I must say that I wasn't at all disappointed with the movie and desperately need to watch the original Bram Stoker's Dracula.
When I got home after this movie I was able to finish a book I had been writing fore months that is based on Dracula. There might be some spoilers in this post so if you want to see the movie with an open mind you might want to skip this. If you want to know, like I would, then read on by all means.
Vlad Tepes (Luke Evans) lives in peace with his wife Mirena (Sarah Gadon) and his son Ingeras (Art Parkinson). Unfortunately his time for peace and quiet are over when the Turks demand all the boys in the area for yet another war. Vlad refuses and kills the men who come to take his son. To protect his family he goes up into the mountains and into a cave where a true monster lurks. The monster Simion (Ronan Vibert) gives Vlad a choice...protect his family or die. Vlad obviously chose to protect his people and family so he drinks the vampires blood and has three days until the powers wane. There was a catch though, should he drink blood from a human he would remain a vampire forever.
His friend from the war Mehmed (Dominic Cooper) sends thousands of men to get the boys for the war and Vlad kills them all singlehandedly. Realizing that it wasn't safe in the castle anymore they go to the monastery up in the mountains. While his family and people traveled in the day he was forced to travel at night which almost led to his family being killed by some Turks who'd come after them.
Once they make it to the monastery everyone turns on Vlad when they realize what he was. His wife stood up for him and he prepared for the 100,000 troops, including Mehmed, that came after him. He killed many but while he was distracted the Turks threw his wife off of the balcony and he flew after her in a panic. Not being fast enough she lay dying only to tell him to drink her blood. Against his better judgment he does and creates an army out of his fallen comrades. He and his army go after Mehmed, who has Ingeras, and wreak havoc on the army.
Do he and his army of vampires win? What does he do with the uncontrollable vampires afterwards? Does his son make it out alive?
I honestly loved the ending because I wasn't expecting it. This is a tragic love story, which appeals to women, and has great battle scenes for the men. It was a great ending though and I hope you all go and see it. You will love it! :D

Guardians of the Galaxy Movie Review

Title: Guardians of the Galaxy

Year: 2014

Time: 2hrs & 2min

Rating: 4.5/5

So after work one day I talked my mom into going to see this movie with me since I'd heard great things about it from all of my friends. Even the woman we bought the tickets from said it was the best movie playing at the time. That was all it really took for my mom to finally agree to go see it with me.
Quin, or Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), is taken from Earth after his mother died when he was young and was supposed to be taken to his father and yet the mercenaries had another idea. Now he is a thief who steals important artifacts to sell to the highest bidder. One such artifact is desired by another, Ronan (Lee Pace), who sends men to retrieve the orb.
When his men fail he sends his master Thanos's (Josh Brolin) daughter Gamora (Zoe Saldana) to get the orb from Quin only to be attacked by bounty hunters Rocket (Bradley Cooper) and Groot (Vin Diesel). In an attempt to get the reward on Quin's head they start a fight that leads them all to be arrested and thrown in jail. There they meet Drax (Dave Bautista) who almost kills Gamora only to decide that he needs her alive in order to draw Ronan to the prison. He needs her alive in order to kill Ronan who killed his wife and child.
Groot and Rocket manage to find a way to break all of them out of prison and so their journey on Quin's ship begins. They travel to see Gamora's buyer in order to find out why the orb was so important. The Collector (Benicio Del Toro) tells them what is inside the orb and they all realize that the thing must never fall into Ronan's hands if they wanted the galaxy to survive.
Unfortunately Drax send word to Ronan and a fight breaks out in which Gamora and Quin are captured by Yondu Udonta (Michael Rooker) who was the one to put the bounty on Quin's head. Instead of killing Quin they decided to go after Ronan, who had taken the orb, and save a planet.
A huge battle begins and  a lot of people die...Do the Guardians survive? Does Ronan destroy the planet and take over the universe? Who is Quin's real father?
Well unfortunately you don't find out the answer to the last question, which stinks, but it is still a great movie and you can't help but love Rocket! Everyone must see this movie!

Blended Movie

Title: Blended

Year: 2014

Time: 1hr 57min

Rating: 5/5

So I went to see this movie with a guy and I wasn't too hopeful since Adam Sandler is in the movie but I ended up loving it. And to top off my wonderful evening I was thrilled that my first date ever went so well. Who would've thought?
Jim (Adam Sandler) and Lauren (Drew Barrymore) go on their first date, to Hooters of all places! Needless to say, it goes horribly wrong and they end up fleeing from each other. Lauren organizes closets with her best friend Jen (Wendi Mclendon-Covey) and has two boys that she raises alone since her ex (Joel McHale) is never around. Jim works at Dick's Sporting Good and has three daughters that he is raising alone since his wife died of cancer.
A chance meeting leads them to have the same idea. They both plan a trip to Africa, not realizing that they are both going to be going there. They run into each other and immediately start fighting. Jim takes the boys; Brendan (Braxton Beckham) and Tyler (Kyle Red Silverstine), under his wing while Lauren does the same for the girls; Hilary(Bella Thorne), Espen (Emma Fuhrmann), Lou (Alyvia Alyn Lind). Together they have a wonderful vacation. Jim and Lauren even start to fall for one another but before things can go too far Jim pulls away and the vacation ends.
Jim tries to reconcile with her and try again but he runs into Mark (her ex) who tells him that Lauren and he are trying to make it work. As if! So he leaves and Lauren doesn't know why. Thankfully he shows up for Tyler's baseball game and they kiss. About time right!?
Well this is a definitely must see movie! I hope you take my advice and go see it with you boyfriend/girlfriend, wife/husband, or a friend. It is a perfect couple's movie!

Song of the Moon Review

Title: Song of the Moon

Author: Catherine Banks

Book: (Artemis Lupine, #1)

Pages: 294

Rating: 5/5

So it was a tad bit slow at first but it sped up and I began to hate all the men in her life outside of her pack. Bret and Billy were total jerks! Agh!
Darren is Artemis's father and he takes her and Bret (her best friend) on a trip where they run into the man from her dreams. She has been having dreams of Ares for over a week and when they meet her father rips Artemis away and takes them back home. There they are able to sneak out and watch the news which her father specifically prohibited.
Artemis has one friend (Bret) but she realizes that he has feelings for her that are more than just friendly. Then Billy tries to make her fall for him but that doesn't turn out so well. Ares comes for her and takes her with him, Matt, and Koda (his pack). See they are werewolves, the ones from her dreams. They take her to a small village where Ares (her mate) begins to explain things to her but he keeps some things a secret. Bret gets turned into a werewolf and she finally shifts into her werewolf form. Which is good but once Victor (vampire) shows up and their emotions are being played with they leave and go back to her house to get a few things.
Then they go with Victor to Paris where they meet the Vampire King and she gets a strange vibe from him. Koda, Matt, Ares and her become a pack by sleeping (just sleeping) in the same bed together. But when she gets kidnapped by the Vampire Queen Isabella she discovers that she is part fey. Ares comes to save her and after thinks that he rejected her advances only to finally seal their bond as mates.
At the end they discover that Artemis is supposedly "engaged" to a fey they meet. What an interestingly open ending! It made me laugh so hard at the randomness of it!

About The Author

I'm just your average nerdy bibliophile. I love books, video games, music and movies. In 2010 I self-published my first novel and now I have several titles under construction. I love fantasy and have an extreme love for werewolves. I spend my days off work writing one of my novels or with my husband, daughter, 3 dogs, horse and cat. I love writing stories and they seem to flow out of me constantly. I just want people to read my stories and enjoy them.

Close Liaisons Review

Title: Close Liaisons

Author: Anna Zaires

Book: (The Krinar Chronicles, #1)

Pages: 318

Rating: 5/5

So I thought this book would be rather silly, and it was, don't get me wrong! But it was an amazing book full of new ideas! It has given me an idea on a new book to write too! How cool is that!? I can't wait to get my hands on the second book in the series!
Mia is just a normal college kid living with her best friend. After the world was taken over by the Krinar everything has gotten better and yet there are still pockets of people who are part of the resistance. Aliens are bad right?
She has never had an interest in the resistance or aliens for that matter until she meets Korum, an incredibly sexy Krinar who won't leave her alone. He always seems to turn up when she least expects it!
He takes her on dates and wants to control everything she does, much to her annoyance and she decides to help the resistance get any information she can to help them with their cause. He takes her virtue and so the challenge begins. Can she keep her heart or will she give it up to him?
As their time together gets more intense she will have to find the information before it is too late for the resistance. She loves him...will she be able to betray him? Yes, yes she will.
Does the resistance fall because of her information? Can the aliens leave peacefully for the sake of humanity or will there be another war? Will Korum give up Mia? Can Mia ever forget about Korum if he does leave?
I know the synopsys I wrote isn't very long...but it is much better to read the book than to go on my word that the book is good. It is! I am a writer, I just can't come up with any words that will do this book any justice! :D Hope you read and enjoy the book!

About The Author

Anna Zaires fell in love with books at the age of five, when her grandmother taught her to read. She wrote her first story shortly thereafter. Since then, she has always lived partially in a fantasy world where the only limits were those of her imagination. Currently residing in Florida, Anna is happily married to Dima Zales (a science fiction and fantasy author) and closely collaborates with him on all their works.
After graduating from the University of Chicago with a degree in Economics, Anna spent eight years on Wall Street analyzing stocks and writing research reports. In 2013, she became a full-time author, pursuing her lifelong dream of writing romance novels.  
Dima Zales is the love of her life and a huge inspiration in all aspects of her writing. Every book Anna writes is a product of their unique collaborative process.
In addition to reading and writing, Anna enjoys drinking tea (coconut oolong, anyone?), watching addictive TV shows, and discussing book ideas during long walks with her amazing husband.
She loves hearing from her readers, so please don't hesitate to contact her through her website or connect with her on Facebook, where she hangs out way too often. Also, please visit her husband and collaborator, Dima Zales, at www.dimazales.com and check out their fantasy & science fiction books.

So cool! You wouldn't believe my luck!

So Monday brought storms and tornadoes but yet my dad and I still had to drive up to Nashville to pick my mom up from the airport. It was a long boring trip but when we got there I saw someone I never thought I'd actually meet! Sure I didn't remember his name but what the hell! I knew he was from American Idol so I took a picture of him from a distance. He looked up just as I took the picture so I turned tail and headed the opposite direction.

Then for the hell of it, (and knowing I would regret it if I didn't) I walked up to him and began to talk to him.
"I know this might sound weird, but were you on American Idol?" I asked him.
"Yes."
"What's your name?" I asked in embarrassment.
"Colton." he replied.
Then we talked for a minute and I went back to sit down only to go back over to him and ask if I could get a picture with him. He said sure and since my dad wouldn't get up to take the picture I did it myself! My hands were shaking so badly! I felt so pathetic!
So I sat back down and made my friend look up his name since I still didn't remember his last name and she replied immediately. Ahh! Colton Dixon! I met Colton Dixon at the Nashville Airport people! How amazing is that?!
So now I'm sitting at school listening to his music on YouTube and wondering how I haven't heard of him since American Idol! He's a wonderful singer! Gah! That has to be the best thing that has happened to me all week! I am still mad at myself that the pictures I took were so blurry!
Gosh I look like an idiot in these pictures...I am not photogenic!

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Title: Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Year: 2014

Movie: (Captain America, #2)

Time: 2hrs 26min

Rating: 5/5

So I was dying to see this movie so I dragged my dad along with me on Sunday to go see the movie after shopping around the mall. I got two new pair of shoes! So happy! Well we went to the movie theatre and I swear the previews lasted a good twenty minutes but they were sooooo worth it! The movie was fantastic!

SPOILER ALERTS!!!

Captain America (Chris Evans) has been working for S.H.I.E.L.D since the attack on New York and the movie starts out with him, his men, and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). Once the mission is completed Steve finds out there was an ulterior motive for raiding the ship. When Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) is attacked he turns to Steve for helps and tells him not to trust anyone. Then he is killed in Steve's apartment by the Winter Soldier. Or is he?
Steve is blamed for his death (or something or other) by Alexander Pierce (Robert Redford) and has to go on the run with Natasha who is the only one he can trust. With everyone trying to kill them they have to turn to a friend of Steve's, Sam Wilson, AKA Falcon (Anthony Mackie). They learn that Hydra is still running their operations and has infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D and is planning on killing anyone who stands the risk of turning against them. That's millions of people guys!!
Steve never thought that the Winter Soldier could be someone he knows...and yet he is. It's Bucky (Sebastian Stan)! The same one believed to be killed on a mission over seventy years ago. Bucky doesn't remember Steve at all (thanks to brainwashing) and tries to kill Steve, Natasha, and Sam. The tree of them are captures by S.H.I.E.L.D, AKA Hydra, and Agent Hill (Cobie Smulders) breaks them out and takes them someplace safe. The very same place Nick Fury has been hiding out while he healed.
Now it is up to all of them to reprogram the three ships to destroy one another instead of the general population...including Stark (who isn't shown in the movie). Falcon disables one, Steve another, and Natasha and Fury take on Alexander Pierce.
Steve makes it to the third ship but can he reprogram it in time? Bucky is there...will he kill Steve? His own friend? Will millions of people be killed? If Bucky can't remember...will they both die as a consequence of a mad doctor's work?
This movie was brilliant! Agh! My friend told me to stay until the end and yet she didn't! People! Stay until the END of the credits! Not the end of the movie! THE. END. OF. THE. CREDITS! Oh and Emily VanCamp, the girl from the TV show Revenge, is in the movie playing Agent 13, AKA Kate or his neighbor! Hope you enjoy the movie!