Burn After Reading, Coen brothers legacy

So many good movies by Joel and Ethan Coen that it’s hard to pick a favourite, but this one stands out. I’ve watched it more than once and it stays with me even though it is ten years old.

So when Frances McDormand won best actress at the Oscars for Three Billboards in Ebbing, Missourit, this movie came back to me. Talk about black comedy. We laughed through the first part until the body turned up in the closet. Then we sat with our mouths open in horror.

As reviewer Laura Hiros put it —
“It’s not for everyone, or funny all the time, but it’s worth it for the performances, the cast, the cinematography and of course the complicated and even absurd plot.”

The cast is fantastic. George Clooney plays a role that I never would have imagined him playing—note his list of allergies, the sex toys made in his basement. Brad Pitt is hilarious as a dumbass employee of a gym—he runs daily, monitors his heart rate, his blood pressure, his protein intake, with very little else on his feeble mind.

Tilda Swinton is good, John Malkovich hilarious. France McDormand deserved an Oscar back then as well as this year. Well worth watching again.

What are some of your favourite movies?

Cat in the Garden, Spring is here!

Beautiful day today, the sun is shining and it’s warm outside. There was frost this morning, yet by 9 am it was 5 degrees, and now closer to 8, so I went outside to prune my non-productive fruit trees.

I have two – a pear, and a crabapple. The crabapple has consistently given me a good crop of fruit, and I make applesauce, apple butter, apple jelly most years.

The pear not so much – last year was the first year in 12 seasons that we got any fruit, probably because I pruned it within an inch of its life.

There was a cat in my garden—a beautiful animal, all black, brown and grey stripes, with a tag around its neck, so it has a home. They do like to roam. I also saw the first alligator lizard of the season. Still waiting to hear the chorus frogs, they are late. Spring is here! Time to get busy on the next book.

SYLVIE’S READER TEAM

Are you an avid reader? Would you like to be a member of my Reader Team? You would get advance copies of each book before it is released, with a chance to be first to leave a review. There’s still room!

Email me at the address below with the topic—Reader Team. Please specify Contemporary Romantic Suspense or Sci fi/ Fantasy (Some prefer both ?) Many thanks! sylviegraysonauthor@gmail.com

Mudslides, storms and Prince of Jiran

Finally some sun today, so I could get outside for a walk. We have had a tsunami of rain here on the west coast. The number of collapsed  roads, heavy mudslides, frequent storm warnings have been unusual. Here’s a little creek that only runs in the winter during very heavy rain, but today it was in full activity.

~~~

PRINCE OF JIRAN, The Last War: Book Five

Shandro Penrhy didn’t have rain to contend with, but the snow storm that surrounded his men while they were under attack was enough to set them back on their heels. Have a look at Prince of Jiran, The Last War: Book Five here – https://bitly.com/#

Shandro is sent on a mission across the mountains into Khandarken to bring back Princess Chinata, a bride for Emperor Carlton’s Advisor. In exchange, Jiran and the Penrhy tribe are given a peace agreement, protection against invasion by the Emperor’s troops. This seems a good trade, as Carlton is hovering on their borders with his need for more land. However, not far into the journey, it becomes apparent someone is not adhering to the terms of the peace accord.

Near the tribal border, Shandro and his troops have come under direct attack from unknown forces. He digs deeper into Chinata’s background to find strong ties to the New Empire. Is it too dangerous to bring Princess Chinata into Jiran? Or as her escort, does Shandro become her defender against the Emperor’s troops?

~~~

SYLVIE’S READER TEAM

Are you an avid reader? Would you like to be a member of my Reader Team? You would get advance copies of each book before it is released, with a chance to be first to leave a review. There’s still room!

Email me at the address below with the topic—Reader Team. Please specify Contemporary Romantic Suspense or Sci fi/ Fantasy (Some prefer both ?) Many thanks! sylviegraysonauthor@gmail.com

 

Happy 2018! New release, The Last War, Book Five

Happy New Year for 2018

Wow, how time flies. I can’t believe we are here already.

I have exciting news. The next book in the series The Last War has just been released. Prince of Jiran, The Last War: Book Five. Be among the first to read and review! You can find it on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Sylvie-Grayson/e/B00OEIVODG/ 

My special offer- send me proof of purchase for Prince of Jiran,  The Last War: Book Five, and I’ll send you your choice of any one of the previous four books for free! ebook only!  Email the information to  sylviegraysonauthor@gmail.com  by January 30th, 2018

 *************

A Penrhy prince caught between duty and desire. Can he win the impending battle?

Shandro, Prince of the Penrhy tribe of Jiran, disagrees with his father,  Sovereign Pollack, on nearly every issue that arises between them. But his goal is to uphold the family values in spite of Pollack’s conniving moves as he deals with the hotbed of competing nations around them.

Then Shandro is sent on a mission across the mountains into Khandarken to bring back Princess Chinata, a bride for Emperor Carlton’s Advisor. In exchange, Jiran and the Penrhy tribe are given a peace agreement, protection against invasion by the Emperor’s troops. This seems a good trade, as Carlton is hovering on their borders with his need for more land. However, not far into the journey, it becomes apparent someone is not adhering to the terms of the peace accord.

Near the tribal border, Shandro and his troops have come under direct attack from unknown forces. He digs deeper into Chinata’s background to find strong ties to the New Empire. Is it too dangerous to bring Princess Chinata into Jiran? Or as her escort, does Shandro become her defender against the Emperor’s troops?

*************

SYLVIE’S READER TEAM

Are you an avid reader? Would you like to be a member  of my Reader Team? You would get advance copies of each book before it is released, with a chance to be first to leave a review. There’s still room!

Email me at the address below with the topic – Reader Team.  Please specify Contemporary Romantic Suspense or Sci fi/ Fantasy.  (Some prefer both ?)  Many thanks! sylviegraysonauthor@gmail.com