City of Dreams by Don Winslow

May 5, 2025

City of Dreams by Don Winslow

After double-crossing the Moretti crime family in Rhode Island, Danny Ryan flees the east coast for California with his father, his toddler son, and the remnants of his Irish crew. He just wants a quiet life, to start over with his child. But federal agents contact him about doing them a favor; in return, they will help his problems from his old life go away. But then Danny learns that one of the film studios is making a movie based on the crime wars back in Providence, and he decides he wants in on the project.

The second book in the Danny Ryan trilogy, sequel to City on Fire, picks up exactly where the previous book leaves off. Loosely based on Vergil's Aeneid, which is the sequel to Homer's Iliad. Danny insists (a little too much) that he wants to go straight and live a quiet life, but just like the leopard, Danny can't change his spots: crime and bad decisions just seem to find him. All of the characters except Danny's son display some moral ambiguity - no one is all bad or all good. Furthermore, there is a pervading sense of tragedy that affects all the characters. Doesn't work as a stand-alone novel - you need to read the previous book to really understand what is going on here. I can't wait to get the final book in the trilogy, City in Ruins.

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

June 26, 2024

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

A mid-level  movie studio decides to make a film called The Seventh Veil of Salome. Every actress and starlet in Hollywood auditions for the role of Salome, but everyone is surprised when the director selects an unknown Mexican actress for the part. A struggling actress believes the part was stolen from her and is convinced that if she can get rid of the other actress, she will be able to step into the part.

This is a different direction for Moreno-Garcia, purely historical fiction with nothing mythical or supernatural. Three women, all struggling to find their identities and be heard in a male-dominated world: Salome, daughter of Herodias, niece of Herod Antipas, Princess of Idumea; Vera, a Mexican actress and newcomer to Hollywood; and Nancy, a struggling extra who has been trying to get her big break in Hollywood for ten years, convinced that she could be a major star. Two parallel storylines, one the life of Salome, the other the movie being made about her. Although there are multiple POV and narrators, I did not find it at all confusing. We are supposed to hate Nancy, the villain of the piece, but really she is her own worst enemy, sabotaging herself at every turn, so it's hard not to feel sorry for her for her dumb choices. Highly recommended for readers of historical fiction, especially about the golden age of Hollywood.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Traditional depiction of Salome

Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle

June 3, 2024

Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle

After 20 years of struggling, writing mostly B-level horror films, Misha has been nominated for an Oscar for one of his short films and has finally landed a gig as a screenwriter on a successful television show. He has a boyfriend that he is crazy about and friends who care about him. But as soon as two gay characters fall in love, the studio heads instruct Misha to kill them off since they think it will improve the show's arc. Misha is pissed about this and refuses to kill off the characters, which may cost him his job. But that's not the worst of it -- characters from Misha's horror films (The Smoker, Mrs. Why, Black Lamb, The Bride) are stalking him and his friends.

This was one of my selections for Pride Month 2024. I'm not a huge horror fan (although I do seem to read more horror than I think I do) but this was pretty entertaining. BTW, the Bury Your Gays trope is a literary trope where a gay character dies tragically, usually right before or right after declaring their love for another gay character. The really screwed up part is that the surviving gay character "realizes" that they're not really gay at all, and they console themselves by falling in love with a straight character. Horror fans will enjoy the dark humor as well as the creepy characters.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Movie studio

We Are the Light by Matthew Quick

April 8, 2024

We Are the Light by Matthew Quick

Lucas Goodgame is viewed as a hero by everyone who lives in his small town, except himself. His murdered wife Darcy visits him nightly in angel form. Lucas desperately wants to reconnect with his therapist Karl, but Karl is also in mourning. So Lucas begins to write letters to Karl, detailing his suffering as well as his nightly communications with Darcy. But then a damaged young man named Eli sets up a tent in his backyard, and they begin to heal each other and the town. 

Not an easy read since it deals with a story taken from daily news headlines. Those killed in a mass shooting aren't the only victims - how do the survivors and witnesses pick up their lives and go on? Themes of grief, trauma, anger, and ultimately love and healing in its many forms. Less about the shooting than it is about the aftermath.

Classic restored movie theater

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

July 13, 2023

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Monserrat and Tristan work in the Mexican film industry: Monserrat is a struggling sound editor in a male-dominated field, while Tristan, a former soap opera star until his career was cut short by a car accident, takes whatever work he can get, mostly doing voice-overs. When Tristan moves to a new apartment, he makes the acquaintance of legendary horror movie director Abel Urueta. Urueta convinces them to dub in the voices on an old piece of black and white film, and their luck appears to change for the better. But then bad things start to happen, and they realize that they may have unleashed evil powers that they can't control.

Contemporary horror fiction with lots of history about the Mexican film industry. Silver nitrate was used for black and white film production in the golden age of cinema, and while it produced beautiful images, it is highly flammable. Silver was also used in occult rituals. Recommended for readers of horror fiction or anyone interested in the film industry.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Still from a low-budget Mexican horror film

Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra

July 10, 2022

Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra

At the start of World War II, Mercury Pictures is strictly a B-movie studio (possibly a C-movie studio), until a critic hails one of their films as a prophetic masterpiece. The studio owner, a man of many toupees, is called to Washington D.C. and enlisted to make propaganda films (i.e., war fiction) for the U.S. government. Maria Lagana, an associate producer at Mercury, came to the U.S. from Italy as a child but when the U.S. enters World War II, she is subject to the same restrictions as other German, Italian, and Asian Americans. Former architects, poets, and photographers are enlisted to make miniature replicas of Berlin, write B-movie propaganda films, and portray stereotypical evil villains from the Axis countries.

This was a fascinating look at the culture, politics and economics of the movie industry in the WWII era. There was a lot more humor than I was expecting, and I highly recommend it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC.

Typical propaganda film of the World War II era

All About Me! My Remarkable Life in Show Business by Mel Brooks

February 22, 2022

All About Me! My Remarkable Life in Show Business by Mel Brooks

At age 95, Mel Brooks has written a fabulous autobiography of his life as an actor/director/writer/producer of some of my favorite zany, irreverant films.

Love this - what a mensch!

Mel Brooks with Harvey Korman and some busty girl from Blazing Saddles

Complicit by Winnie M. Li

August 11, 2022

Complicit by Winnie M. Li

Sarah Lai has adored movies since she was a child. When the opportunity to work for a fledgling production company comes her way, she jumps at the chance. Chafing at doing grunt work, Sarah longs for a chance to be more involved in the film company. She gets her break when a script from a new director needs tweaking. She edits and improves the script, then is promoted to Associate Producer to work on the director's second film - in Hollywood. As an Asian American, Sarah feels like an outsider in the industry and works hard to prove that she deserves to be there. But she is unprepared for the drugs, alcohol and party lifestyle that pervade the Los Angeles film industry.

Winnie M. Li gives us a story pulled from current headlines. While you may feel that you know the story, unless you work in the industry, you don't know about the sordid underside of movie making. Li's main character Sarah is right in the thick of everything and gives a great picture of the "glamorous" film industry. Wonderful writing, will keep you turning the pages.

The red carpet, the ultimate goal of any filmmaker

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC.

The Electric Hotel by Dominic Smith

August 5, 2019

The Electric Hotel by Dominic Smith

As a young man, Claude Ballard was fascinated by moving pictures and takes a job as a representative for the Lumiere brothers, demonstrating and selling their cinematic equipment.  He went on to direct silent films and unexpectedly stopped after making his greatest film, "The Electric Hotel."  But the film is controversial, and he faces a legal challenge from Thomas Edison, who has patented the process of motion pictures and wants to be the sole creator and distributor (who knew Edison was such a bully?). 

Claude becomes reclusive, living at the shabby Knickerbocker Hotel in Los Angeles, his room filled with containers of decaying film, photographing people on the street and foraging the hills for mushrooms and herbs.  When a film student asks to interview him and discuss his lost masterpiece for his thesis, Claude admits that in fact he has a copy of the film, and it isn't lost at all.  He is forced to re-live his career and his relationship with his muse Sabine Montrose, his life unspooling like a reel of film.  While "The Electric Hotel" is considered to be his masterpiece, Claude eventually reveals the film that he considers to be his greatest work.

In many ways, The Electric Hotel is an interesting read, spanning about 70 years and filled with information about the early days of motion pictures.  But the pacing is slow and the story drags through the painful process of making a silent film.  Many of the characters were detached and distant - the stuntman Chip was the best character in the book.  I stopped halfway through and read a couple of other books, then went back to this one.  I'm glad I did, since the last hundred pages make up for the first two hundred pages.  But unless you are really into cinematic history, I wouldn't recommend this one.