Brunner's Bar

Pretty Girls I love Karin Slaughter. Her books are full of intense suspense, great characters, and a plot that will grab you from the very beginning and never let go. Her books can also have so pretty disturbing and gruesome subject matter. I'm not as strong as I used to be. Before I had kids I could read anything and it would disturb me or make me uncomfortable but never bother me like it does after having kids. This book was so horrific that I had to take a day off reading this book because it was to much. I'd have to stop every now and then to take a breather and step back. I wanted to stop this book and not subject myself to any more of the disturbing content, but here is where Karin Slaughter is a genius. She wrote a mystery around this that made me want to keep going. I had to find out the details of what was going on and how this book ended.  The book opens with a father reading a letter he wrote to his daughter who has gone missing. This right here is what be

Lost Army Vol 1 I'm going to admit right off the bat, I have missed something. It dawned on me after I read this book and before I read Green Lantern Vol 7 that I missed Green Lantern Vol 6. I also haven't read The Green Lantern Corps books since Vol 3. I have only read the anthology books that includes issues from there. So when this book started I wanted to know how these Lanterns ended up in what seems like a different universe.  The one interesting thing about this book is it looks like our band of heroes have some how ended up in the universe that holds the key players in the beginning of all universes and the creation of the emotional spectrum. With all of this going on and our heroes not only trying to find their way home but help out along the way I expected this story to be more interesting.  There were a lot of flash backs to John Stewart's time in the military which I know is supposed to parallel what is happening and show John's thought proces

Supergirl I really didn't have any intention of reviewing this show, but now that the season has ended and I have had time to think about this show I can't get it out of my mind. I really liked this show and I am so happy to see a show out there that proves girls can kick ass just as much as men can. At this point I can only hope for a second season. This last episode left things hanging with a decent cliffhanger so not only do I want to know what is going to happen next, but I want more of the show, the characters, and the action.  Supergirl has a a level of cheese factor but it is in the best way. Supergirl is supposed to be cheery and optimistic. She is new to the whole Superhero thing so it makes sense that she still has the bubbly optimism instead of the jaded cynic most older super heroes seem to become. So when it comes to casting the bubbly superhero I have to say that Melissa Benoist is perfect for this role. I have to be honest that I have never seen her in

Ghost Story If you haven't read up tot his book and you intend to then stop reading this review now. I'm going to spoil that last book in 3...2...1.. So the last book ends with Harry's death. Talk about a WTF moment and one hell of a cliffhanger. I couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen yet. Harry can't be dead. He is the hero of these books and I know there are more than just 13 books. Still, to end a book with Harry being shot and falling into the lake to drown slash bleed out was gut wrenching because I had to know what was coming next.  I'm going to just say this right now so it is out of the way. I wish the pacing of this book was a little faster. I wanted Harry to get the the meat of the story a little bit faster and I felt like I was being held back if that makes any sense. I felt as if the story wanted to run but there were rocks tied to it holding it back. This is the common feel all the way through until the very end. Once ag

Study Hall of Justice So the hype behind Batman v Superman is so huge that so many things have spun off from this movie. My kids loved the cereal that hit grocery store shelves. Not only have food companies and car companies found a way to make money off this movie but a lot of kids books have come out. I love the fact that this movie created more books because I love to read and anytime my kids are excited to read I will make myself broke buying books for them.  My son is 6 and in Kindergarten and he loves to read, especially now that he has learned how. I was looking through his Book Fair catalog and was really excited to see a  a paperback version of this that was affordable. I made sure we went to his school on open house night so we could get this and it was really cute. Bruce has been transferred to Ducard Academy. His classmates and teachers are more on the evil side of things. Mad Hatter is the science teacher, Hugo Strange is the guidance counselor, and Brainiac i

The Grownup I have really liked all the books I have read by Gillian Flynn. When I saw this was out I couldn't get my name on the list fast enough. Finally I got a chance to read this and I loved it. This is a really short story so there isn't much to talk about so I will do my best to not spoil anything.  Gillian Flynn is notorious for writing characters that are just the lowest form of person that you just don't like. At the same time they are the kind of character you love to hate. Right at the beginning of the story our un-named narrator starts talking about how great she is at Hand jobs. Her job is working for a Psychic/palm reader. The front of the shop is all for the lady clients who are looking for love advice or some sort of self-esteem boost with the aura readers and psychics.  The back of the business is for the male clients looking for a helping hand. Our narrator is suffering from carpel tunnel  syndrome. Shocker. Her boss doesn't want to loose h

Changes Changes doesn't do this book justice. So much happens in this book I am still realing from the massive ending. Let me just say right up from that the ending is worth everything that leads up to it. I couldn't put this book down and I was almost shaking at the end of the book. Make sure you have the next one because the way this ends you are not going to want to wait to see what happens next. One of the biggest cliffhangers ever. Ok enough about the end of the book. I hate spoilers so I will try my hardest not to ruin anything in this book. If you haven't read up to this point and are planning to read these books I might warn you to stop here. I wont spoil anything about this book but I might give away some things in the series by accident. Here goes this book drops a huge bomb in less than a few pages. Susan comes back to ask Harry to help her retrieve their daughter who has been kidnapped by the Red Court of Vampires. My mind was officially blown right f

Open for Business I didn't know what to think. I have been a Batman fan since I was old enough to watch re-runs of Adam West on television. I have also been a long time fan of the Green Arrow since right before he married Black Canary so I know the Red Hood and Arsenal very well. When I saw this on Edelweiss I took a shot and threw my name in the hat. Thanks to DC Comics I was able to give this a read and write this review. I haven't read any of the Red Hood and the outlaws books since New 52 so I will admit I am a bit out of the loop when it comes to the references in this book but I wanted to see what this is all about.  The story is a little odd but I have to admit that I liked seeing a different side to Jason Todd. Jason Todd is one of those pissed at the world feels like it owes him something for all the crap that it dumped on him. He is always angry and ready for a fight. However, in this book we see a smarter more calculating side to him. He is very much like

Rise of the Governor I'm a huge fan of the Walking Dead and one of my favorite characters is the Governor. He is one of those characters you love to hate. This is one of the most despicable characters ever written and I place him in the hate hall of fame along side the Jim Rennie from Under the Dome. Still, the Governor is one of those characters you never forget and when a friend of mine started reading these books I got real excited that I could get more to the story.  This begins after the Zombie apocalypse has already set in and we follow Phillip, Brian, Nick and , Penny. Penny is Phillips daughter, Brian is the Bohemian brother and Nick is just a friend of Phillip. In this dystopian time it is very important to have a group. I really liked seeing how all of this started. The story wasn't all that suspenseful but it held my attention and I couldn't stop reading this. This book is a little on the slower side to be honest but it is very character driven which

Superheavy If you haven't read the previous volumes and would like to find out what happens on your own, this is your SPOILER WARNING.  What the F@#$ is going on?!?!?! I knew there was going to be fall out from Bruce and the Joker being crushed under the cave in at the end of Vol 7 but this was not at all what I expected. Bruce is safe but has lost everything that makes him Batman. He has this beard that just looks odd on him. The city needs a Batman so a secret military like group constructs a mechanical batman suit that looked more like the 80's robot that delivered drinks. Who is in this suit being the new Batman I'm so lost at this point. I'm not sure how Bruce survived the cave in and then what happened to Joker? That wasn't addressed in this book at all. Scott Snyder is an amazing writer and I hope he has a way to bring this all back to normal before his run on the series ends. Now the new Batman. There is a man in the suit and he wears a costume

Batman and Robin: Eternal Vol 1 I have been a huge fan of Scott Snyder and his run on the Batman series. I was honestly crushed when I read he will be leaving the series but I am going to enjoy everything until that point. A lot has happened to Batman and I'm a little behind. I have really enjoyed Batman Eternal and when I saw this I had to read it. Thanks to Edelweiss and DC Comics I was able to read this for a review.  Batman has been replaced with a mechanical suit being driven by someone, I have no idea who. Like I said I am behind and may have missed this little bit of information. I didn't know there was a book I should have read first. Anyway, Dick Greyson is back in Gotham and he is teamed up with Red Robin, The Red Hood and all kinds of kids trying to live up to the Robin name. Someone known as Mother may know everything about the Bat-Family and will use it to destroy them. Batman may have a secret that will tear the boys apart and crush Dick when he finds o

Turn Coat It is so nice to be back in Chicago with Harry Dresden. This is one of those series that even though I know it is fictional, every time I pick one of these up I feel like I am hanging out with old friends telling story over a beer. Dresden has his work cut out for him in this book. For those of you who have read this series you will know who Morgan is. For those that don't he is a senior wizard of the council that has hated Dresden since the very beginning. So it was a shock when Morgan shows up on Dresden's door step bleeding and wounded and asking for help. Chasing Morgan and now Dresden is a creature known as a Skin Walker. I have always been interested in the lore behind Skin Walkers. This is a Navajo legend and even mentioned in this book the Navajo don't like talking about it for fear that they will be heard and attacked by the Skin Walker. A lot of stories take after the werewolf type of character but Jim Butcher does a great job holding to the l

Have you ever felt that your DVR is running your life? My wife and I have a bunch of shows we have sort of collected over the years that we record so we never miss an episode. There are so many of these shows all airing right now that some nights we can't watch Television unless we pick a recording.  Every night becomes a decision as to which show do we watch and which ones do we wait for another night to try and catch up. Then out of no where we have 5 episodes of this show and 4 episodes of that show stacked up and it is tough to catch up. I'm always worried about storage space so I don't end up loosing a show I wanted to watch. I can't believe I have let myself get so caught up in something so stupid. The other thing that seems to have a hold on me is my iPhone. Thank you Apple for making something that can hold my entire life in it so I am organized. However, I have found that if I forget my phone at home even for the shortest of errands I am lost and fee