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?

Prairie Storm – on sale!

In honour of Canada’s 150th birthday –a short story out of the prairies during World War I,  On sale now!

As the Great War drags on, can a prairie farmer put his life back together?

It’s 1918, and prairie farmer Shane Narraway and his brothers are doing their best to help feed the Allied troops fighting overseas. As the war drags on, it is a tough time of hard work and deprivation for everyone .

But Shane’s bigger goal is to marry Emily Waddell. Emily has just arrived in Canada and already lost her family and her dreams. She’s looking for a way to create a new life for herself.

With the war news worsening daily, his brother fighting in Europe, and the outbreak of the Spanish flu, Shane’s life is about to unfold in ways he never imagined.

NOW ON SALE for .99 Buy it now!  https://tinyurl.com/yabtnce4

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

 

Son of the Emperor, on sale now!

SON OF THE EMPEROR, The Last War: Book Two

The Emperor is defeated but already unrest is growing in the north of Khandarken. After Julianne Adjudicator’s father disappears, she seeks to escape the clutches of her vicious stepmother Zanata, and flees to the Sanctuary.

This is rumored to be the safest place for a woman in a hostile world  of unrest and roving dispossessed. But when Julianne seeks asylum, it soon becomes clear all is not as it first appeared.

The Last War series is a stunning portrayal of a new world created from fire and consumed at the edges …- sci fi and fantasy at its best…

NOW ON SALE for .99

Buy it now!  http://www.books2read.com/SonOfTheEmperor

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PRINCE OF JIRAN, The Last War: Book Five

Shandro, Prince of the Penrhy tribe, 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. Then he is sent on a mission to find Princess Chinata and bring her  through the Khandarken mountains. She is to be the bride of the Advisor  to Emperor Carlton.

n exchange Jiran is granted a peace agreement, protection against invasion by the Emperor’s troops which are hovering  on their borders. But not far into the journey, it becomes apparent

someone is not adhering to the deal. Should Shandro carry out his task to bring Princess Chinata to Jiran,  or does he become her defender against all odds? Only time will tell, as he digs deeper into the background of the Princess and her ties to the New Empire.

TO BE RELEASED SOON, WATCH FOR IT!

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

 

Inundated With Tomatoes

Fall is here at last. The tomatoes went crazy in my garden this year. They grew so tall they pulled the tomato cages over. I had to stake them up with thick bamboo stakes and use string to tie them on. Then the fruit came—baskets of ripe tomatoes. Right beside the tomatoes were two cucumber vines that kept spitting out large prickly cukes. What to do with all that food?

I gave a bunch away, but looked for recipes to use it. This is a gazpacho soup which used both a ton of tomatoes and a bunch of cucumber. Perfect!

I loved it. My husband said he wasn’t used to this kind of food, and although it was very good, it left him wondering what was for dinner!

Recipe –

Large prickly cucumber, peeled and sliced

Tomatoes in equal amount to the cuke

2 cloves garlic

¾ c. red onion

Olive oil

Balsamic vinegar

Parsley leaves, handful

Oregano leaves, handful

Put through blender till smooth and season to taste with salt, pepper, Worchestershire sauce, bruschetta spices. Slice an avocado and add to soup, cool in refrigerator. Serve with crusty bread, toasted, and topped with parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

What do you do with  your tomatoes?

Happy Canada Day – Independence Day

Read our Anthology of stories in honour of Canada’s 150th Anniversary. From the North West Company, through prairie settlement and war to modern-day life, with joy, humour and sorrow woven in. We had fun writing these stories, and you’ll have some fun reading them.

Celebrate us!