BOOK REVIEW: Red, White, and Royal Blue Four stars **** out of five

 This has been a highly successful book, and deservedly so, but there are problems. Is there anyone who does not know that it is the story of a romance between Prince Henry of the UK and Alex Claremont-Diaz, son of the first female US President?

Let's start with the problems (cons, if you will).

The three main characters in the White House--Alex, his sister June, and Mona, the grand-daughter of the Vice-President--are all in their early twenties.  Alex is in fact, 21 when the story begins, and it is I think, 2020,   Alex listens to records.  Really?  I realize that Barnes and Noble has been plugging  a comeback of vinyl for quite some time, now, but I don't see the early twenties crowd abandoning their Walkmen and other CD devices.

Alex often refers to himself as having been a working-class kid, but that is nonsense.  No child, both of whose parents are lawyers later turned politicians, can possibly be considered as working class.

Prince Henry fights any relationship because he considers himself married to the monarchy.  He says "My brother Philip is the heir and I'm the spare."   That, too, is nonsense.  Henry's widowed mother, the queen's daughter, would be the heir; his older brother second in line; his older sister third in line; and he, Henry, fourth in line for the throne and therefore hardly indispensable.

Those objections aside, the story proceeds very well from their first public appearance to their outing, to their final reconciliation with reality.

 

Movie Review - Redwoods (2009)

 I'll give this charming little film 8 out of 10 stars.

Redwoods (2009)

An unfulfilled gay man in a stagnant relationship finds his life changed forever when he meets a struggling writer visiting the Redwoods Country.

Matthew Montgomery is in his usual good form as the struggling writer.

Click on this for a link to IMDB 

Redwoods

 

 

Bottoms Up now available from JMS Books, LLC

 I have entered into a partnership publishing agreement with JMS Books, LLC, and my books will begin to become available on their site.

The First release is  Bottoms Up, and is now available from:

https://www.jms-books.com/

SURVEY

 How Do You Decide

What Book to Purchase

A:  Do you search particular categories on Amazon and other sites?

If so, what categories do you use?

B:  Rely on recommendations from friends and colleagues?

C:  See advertisements?

D:  Other___________________________________________

You may answer by commenting on the blog, or by sending an e-mail to:

etienne.reynard@comcast.net

Thank you.

 

 

 

10th Anniversary Sale

•  My first novel  The Path to Forever  was published in November 2010

To celebrate its 10th Anniversary, I am offering a 50% off sale of all my books.  Use the coupon code XN53W at Smashwords.Com through the end of 2020 and received a 50% discount on all books.

Another series to consider when streaming

Inspector Vivaldi Mysteries is a short series with only six episodes, but they are both well written and well presented.

 

Inspector Vivaldi is with the Triest police department.  Triest is a city on the northeast coast ot Italy.

 Inspector Vivaldi is estranged from his wife ( they live apart, but are not divorced).  He has a son, Stefano Vivaldi, who is also a policeman on the force.   Inspector Vivaldi is having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that his son is gay.  Stefano Vivaldi has a putative girlfriend/fianee, and a boyfriend who is a doctor at a local hospital.  Stefano is having difficulty dealing with the fact that he is gay.

 All in all, a series that is well worth your time.

 

 

Streaming suggestions: "Vera"

If you're staying at home a lot during the current crisis, you're probably spending more time in front of the television screen.

My partner and I sit down every evening around nine or so, and watch a movie or an episode from a series.

If you like mysteries, don’t overlook the British series “Vera.”  It is well written, well acted, and is now in its 10th season.  That sounds bigger than it is, because there are only four episodes per season.

Vera Stanhope is short, plump, and fiftysomething.  She cares nothing about fashion, and usually wears a trench coat over a shapeless dress.  She is also a DCI (Detective Chief Inspector) with the Northumbria and City Police.  Northumbria is a county in the extreme northeast corner of England.  It butts up against Scotland on the north, and the North Sea on the east.  It’s not a place that I would care to live, as all the scenes of the countryside and seacoast look rather bleak and foreboding.  Not to mention the fact that the average high temperatures in Jul and August are only in the mid-sixties.  Her force serves the county, and the nearby city of Newcastle.

She has a staff of half a dozen or so officers, and is always accompanied by her right-hand-man, DS (Detective Sergeant) Healy, a young man probably half her age.  She regularly calls people “pet” or “love” (as in, “we’re here to help you, pet”).  She treats her staff like family, and has regular flashes of intuition that help her solve cases.

The only problem we can find with the program is the fault of the BBC, who a few years ago began to require that all British programs emphasize diversity at the expense of reality.  Thus, you find an unusually large number of mixed-race couples in some remote corners of England.  It doesn’t work, because it defies logic.

In any case, if you like the mystery genre, you will like Vera.

New book by Gerald Lopez just released

Masters of Time and Space

(Dawn of Adventure)

Thomas Hadley’s life is changed forever in this campy, fun, and sexy sci-fi fantasy.
When handsome man from the future Captain Reginald P. Barrington lands his spaceship in back of a farmhouse he meets the love of his life—Thomas. And Reginald doesn’t think twice about whisking the handsome Thomas away for an exciting adventure through time and space. But danger awaits the new twosome in corners of the universe Thomas never even knew existed.

Now available on Amazon.Com and Smashwords.Com

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0871M9P94/

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1015063

Just Friends (2018) Movie Review

Just Friends is a sweet story about two young men in Holland.  They have different backgrounds, but they also have overbearing mothers in common.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7901640/

Joris, the principal character, is played by Josha Stradowski, a 6'2" actor from the Netherlands.  His only defect, as far as I can see, is that he doesn't have much of a butt.   His love interest, Yad, is played by Majd Mardo.

When looking for gay films on streaming services, it is difficult to find really well done films, but this one wins the prize, and I give it four out of five stars.

Stradowski has been case as  the lead character in the upcoming tv series, Wheel of Time, which is based on the best-selling fantasy series by Robert Jordan.

Stranger By the Lake (2013) - movie review

This film from 2013 is most unusual.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2852458/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

The main character (Franck) spends a lot of time driving to a remote lake that is also a gay cruising spot.  Lots of nudity and sex going on.  He meets and falls in love with Michel, who he soon learns is not quite a law-abiding citizen.  In spite of what he knows, he keeps coming back for more.

This film is not for everyone, but is interesting, and not just for the eye candy.  Unfortunately, if you are (like myself) an ass man, none of the characters have interesting butts. The ending is more than a bit ambiguous.

I'll give it 8 out of ten stars.

Movie Review Shelter (2007)

Shelter (2007)   Four stars out of five.

   
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0942384/


Zach is in a dead end situation.  He lives with his father, his sister, and his five-year-old nephew.  His dad is not working, but we never really learn why.  His sister is totally irresponsible and leaves much of the caregiving for her son to Zach.  Zach is working as a short order cook in a diner, but his real love is art.

He eventually becomes involved with Shaun, who is the older brother of his best friend.  Just as he is getting his life together and looking forward to a possible future with Shaun, his sister announces that she and her boyfriend are moving to Oregon, and leaving Zach’s nephew behind.

This movie is fairly well thought ought.  It is also fairly predictable, but so well done that we are quite happy to wait for the happy ending.

Movie Review: Regarding Billy

Regarding Billy    Four stars out of five.



https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0482579/

As the film begins, we meet Billy and his best friend Dean while they are camping out.  They are on the verge of telling each other how they really feel, but can’t quite get the words out.  Dean joins the Navy, and Billy doesn’t see him for three or four years.  Meanwhile, Billy’s parents have been killed in an accident, leaving him to care for his younger brother, who is mildly retarded.

Dean returns from the military, and they not only resume their friendship, but they manage to take it to the next level.

This is a charming story with a happy ending.  It’s one of those movies where you pretty much know what’s going to happen, but the journey is nonetheless enjoyable.

Movie Review: The Cakemaker

I discovered this 2017 film quite by accident, and liked it so well that I immediately purchased the DVD.  I give it four well-earned stars out of five.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4830786/

Set in Berlin and Jerusalem, it is the story of Thomas, who runs a bakery in Berlin.  One of his regular customers is a man named Oren who works for a company with offices in both Jerusalem and Berlin.   Oren and Thomas begin an affair, and every time Oren's job brings him to Berlin, he stays with Thomas. 

Then, one day Oren fails to show up as scheduled, and Thomas eventually learns that Oren has died in an accident, and he goes to Jerusalem to see what he can learn.  There he meets Oren's widow, Sarah, who is running a Kosher coffee shop, and eventually starts to work there, although she doesn't know of his relationship with Oren.

I won't go into any more detail, because to do so would contain too many spoilers.  Suffice it to say that this is a well-crafted movie about human relationships, and it is well worth your time and trouble.

Summer Sale on Smashwords.Com begins Jul 1, 2019

Beginning July 1, all Etienne titles listed on Smashwords.Com will be on sale at a 50% discount.  This sale will run through the month of Jul.

Movie Review: "The Changeling" (1980)

I watched a DVD of this movie last night, and I have to say that this film, dating back almost 40 years, stands the test of time very well.  It is by far, one of the best horror films ever made, and it does it without blood and guts.

Warning:  Spoilers ahead.

George C. Scott plays a middle-aged composer and musician whose wife (played by Jean Marsh of "Upstairs, Downstairs" fame) and young daughter are tragically killed in an automobile accident.  He moves from New York to Seattle for a change of scenery, and to take a teaching post at a local university.  He leases a house from the local historical society, and the fun begins.

The house, he learns, is haunted by the spirit of a young boy who was murdered in the house by his father a few years after 1900.

Things come to a head when a seance is conducted in the house, and the musician learns just enough about the spirit to do some serious detective work.

Besides Jean Marsh, another familiar face turns up in this film.  Madelaine Sherwood plays a minor role, and I recognized her the first time I saw this film as the actress to played "sister woman" in the 1958 film of "Cat On a Hot Tin Roof" with Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman.

The house is a spooky mansion, and the story takes place in winter when most of the trees are bare and a generally gloomy atmosphere prevails.  All of which creates a terrific ambiance for the events in the film.

Nine stars out of ten for this film.

Paperback editions now availalbe for all my novels

    Books by Etienne
    Available in paperback from Amazon.Com

All paperbacks are in "Trade Paperback" 6x9 format, and printed on white paper.
Note the gray band printed across the covers and spine is merely a watermark indicating that the copies pictured are Proofs, and not for resale.  Copies purchased directly from Amazon.Com will not contain these watermarks.


Following is a list of all titles, along with the Amazon book number (ASIN).  To find the paperback edition, go to Amazon.Com and enter the ASIN in the search box.

    The Avondale Stories

    Bodies of Work ASIN: 153540616X

    Drag and Drop ASIN: 1539197883

    Break and Enter ASIN: 1539197964

    Sleuth, LLC: Birds of a Feather ASIN: 1540519406

    Magic Fingers ASIN: 1070552429

    The Burdens of Truth ASIN: 107055328X

    Love Turns the Page ASIN: 1070553913

    Curiosity Satisfied ASIN: 107055457X

    The Tenor Tuner ASIN:109915636X

    The Performers ASIN:1099156106

    Bottoms Up ASIN: 1097480445

    Bottoms Out ASIN:1097479293

    Bottoms Away ASIN:1096697912

    Buzz Bets Badly, But Begets Bliss ASIN:1097478114

    Fold, Do Not Starch ASIN:1096664585

    Sleuth, LLC: Bring Out Your Dead ASIN:1096577070

    All Fall Down ASIN: 1096328771

    A Touch of Blood ASIN: 1095823760

    The Forever Books

    The Path to Forever ASIN: 1535168137

    Prognosis: Forever ASIN: 1536886092

    Sold! ASIN: 1536932965

    Children of Forever ASIN:1099153778

    Appearances Trilogy

    Trial ASIN:1099935369

    Tribulation ASIN:1099934494

    Triumph ASIN:1099933323

    The Ivory Solution

    Scourge ASIN:109915488X

    Cleanse ASIN:1097483835

    Purify ASIN: 1096456648


    Other Books

    Grand Tour ASIN:1477498052

    Bobby and Clyde ASIN:109654086X

    The View From Baskins’ Ridge ASIN: 1096275759
    (Bobby and Clyde Redux

    Rhodri’s Rangers: Searching For Us ASIN: 1096228149

    EMT: A Tale of Love and Disaster ASIN: 1095685066

    Apocalypse—Not ASIN: 1095413813

    Raleigh’s Folly ASIN: 1095483684

Some Call This Progress!!

This is what The Loop on Fishweir Creek once looked like:

That deck ran half the length of the building, and the residents of Riverside and Avondale once sat at their tables on the deck and enjoyed the view and the best grilled chicken sandwich in the city. 

This is what it looked liked after demolition:

The Loop and the deck are gone.  Yes, there  are other Loop outlets in Jacksonville, but none of them have the atmosphere that we once enjoyed at this location.

This is what the site looks like now (May 2019):

Now there is just a blob of ugly apartment buildings.

New Book by Gerald Lopez now available

Detective Layton Shayne and his partners Alex and Forrest are attending a treasure hunt on a small Florida key where hundreds of people will be gathered. What could possibly go wrong? Throw in the ghosts of pirates, priests, and even nuns plus a former military sniper who’s nine months pregnant and anything can happen.

Available from Smashwords.com:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/934869


Available from Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QV423NK/

New Book by Etienne now available

Carlton Perry didn’t know what he was in for when he purchased his antebellum home.  Eric Slade couldn’t imagine what would occur when he met Carlton. In a place where unimaginable horrors had occurred in the distant past, the two men discover one thing. They find an old love so strong that it refuses to die.

Available from Smashwords.Com:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/930546

And from Amazon.Com:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QGKY1XB/

Opera at its very best

Latvian mezzo-soprano Elina Garanca  (pronounced ga-ranch-a) portrays the Gypsy Carmen.  In this scene, she has been restrained (note her wrist is wired to the fence) and uses her wiles to gain her freedom.  This is from a 2010 Metropolitan Opera Performance


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHjnVz7Ayyw






Here, from that same performance is the famous Habenera:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2snTkaD64U

New Etienne Title Now Available for Pre-order

Raleigh's Folly can now be pre-ordered at Smashwords.Com.  The book is scheduled to be released on April 15, 2019.

Carlton Perry didn’t know what he was in for when he purchased his antebellum home. Eric Slade couldn’t imagine what would occur when he met Carlton. In a place where unimaginable horrors had occurred in the distant past, the two men discover one thing. They find an old love so strong that it refuses to die.

Here's a link to the pre-order information on Smashwords.Com:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/930546