J.Sexxy's Review of The Lightning Thief, the movie, (and a bit of a J.Rant)...

Ugh, so not happy with this movie adaption of The Lightning Thief.  By no means was the book exactly fine literature, but it was enjoyable and entertaining and, like The Hunger Games, so easy to adapt to film.  And yet both movies failed, IMO, to capture the books.  Now let me preface by saying I know that a movie can't translate everything that is in a book, that's the beauty of books, they hold something special, their words and our imaginations.  I don't want everything from the book in the movie, b/c the books ARE special and feel like a part of you that no one else will get. 
Now having said that, why the flaming fig newton do they have to take out absolute key plot points and cool scenes?!  Again I get why things are omitted but not so glaring key plot points.  Hollywood has a way of dumbing down our literature b/c they feel the audience isn't patient or smart enough to "get" it.  So we sit here and get Cliff's Notes versions of our favourite books and, to me, it's quite offensive.  These movies not only fail to capture the heart & soul of the books, but they also fail to capture the heart & soul of the avid reader. 
Now I know these movies appeal to a great many people, obviously money talks and from ticket sales it appears that the audience are exactly what Hollywood thinks they are.  We compromise our intelligence and right to be entertained by saying, "Oh it wasn't that bad", "Yeah they left a lot out, but it was OK".  Even though deep down inside the little bookie in us just died a little from saying it.  We make excuses and we shell out our money like well trained parapets.  I used to blame Hollywood, but really it's the viewer that is the cause of this atrocity.
As a huge Stephen King fan, I'm used to movies destroying books I love, but it never ceases to amaze how bad some of these movies really are in comparison to the books they are based.  It's like they are testing how far they can go.  "Let's leave one of the most important plot points from the book, out, and ooo we don't need this character.  What?  The whole plot ends depends on key scenes involving that character?  Who cares, these zombies won't know the difference and if they do they'll lap it up like brains on a buffet". (had to get a zombie shout out in there)
If you've read the Percy Jackson books, you won't like this movie, if you haven't read them, you will.  One more thing... After seeing THG, The Lightning Thief, one of the Twinkie movies, I've come to this realization.  Today's crop of youth actors, suck.  They have the acting range of a peanut.  No wait, I take that back, that's mean.  A peanut can act better.  I mean it fools everyone into thinking it's either a pea or nut, when in fact it is a legume.  I would rather pay to see a canister of Planters peanuts act out a Shakespeare play, than pay to see another one of these YA movies.  To be or not to be... a nut.  Classic. 

Percy Jackson Books

Started reading the Percy Jackson books last week and now on book 2, The Sea of Monsters.  Very enjoyable books.  Not as good as the HP books, but they are good.  Fun, light, enjoyable reads.  And I love the Greek Mythology theme.  I'll give review of the 1st 3 books when I finish them all.  Stay Booked! Happy Reading!

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

This was my 1st foray into the Steampunk genre and it did not disappoint.  I mean it's a book about 1800's Seattle in vain of Jules Verne and has zombies!  It's basically Jules Verne/George Romero hybrid.  BUT and there's a big but, and not the Sir-Mix-A-Lot good kind of big but.  It was a far cry from the thought provoking, imagination bending prose of Verne and far less scarier than Romero's works. 
Book synopsis:  Cherie Priest's much-anticipated steampunk debut has finally arrived in the form of a paperback original. Its plot features the sort of calibrated suspense that readers of her Four and Twenty Blackbirds would expect. Boneshaker derives its title from the Bone-Shaking Drill Engine, a device designed to give Russian prospectors a leg up in the race for Klondike gold. Unfortunately, there was one hitch: On its trial run, the Boneshaker went haywire and, long story short, turned much of Seattle into a city of the dead. Now, 16 years later, a teenage boy decides to find out what is behind that mysterious wall. Can his mother save him in time? Zombie lit of the first order


JaSexxy's Synopsis: It didn't suck, not at all, but it wasn't OMSJ good either. I did enjoy it and it did keep me involved and entertained, it was just Priest's style wasn't that great.  She used italics wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy too much.  I mean like there was a word in italics every other bleeding sentence.  That got a bit annoying.  The characters are likable and you do sympathize with their plight and the machinery and vehicles were pretty cool.  There's a gun that sends off a huge sonic boom that immobilizes zombies for like 5mins, which I thought was pretty inventive and cool.  And made me want to invent it to have b4 the zombie apocalypse actually happens. I'll keep you updated on my progress with that.  Anyway, back to the book. It wasn't a typical zombie book and it wasn't a "You're the chosen one" kind of book, which I liked b/c I feel I've read too many of those of late.  This was the 1st book in The Clockwork Century series and I plan on continuing the adventure, but it isn't like I need to run out and get book 2 right now.  It ended open-ended but not with a cliffhanger.  Though I am looking forward to finding out what happens next, I'm not chomping at the bit (bit of zombie ref for ya), to get to it.  Overall I give it a XX rating (that's out of 3X's) maybe 1 1/2 X's.  I def rec it but wouldn't say, GO NOW AND GET IT!  I will read more of this genre though b/c I think it's wicked cool.  Stay Booked! Happy Reading!