Happy New Year…I’m back! And I have a review, too!

Posted by cat2002116 on January 10, 2026
Posted in: Books, Dystopian, Reviews, Thriller. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I know…it’s been a long time since I’ve posted here! A lot has happened, but we’re now in a new year, and I have several resolutions for 2026. Including being more active with writing my reviews. And reading more.

Apart from that, I also want to start learning to drive this year. And make meal plans that I actually stick to. Oh…and actually work properly on my writing and perhaps even get something close to submitting to a publisher/agent this year. So no pressure at all!

Do you have any New Year’s resolutions? Feel free to share them!

Anyway…onto the review.

So, this was the first book I read in 2026, and…I’m a little disappointed, to be honest. Reading the blurb, I was quite interested in it. I read a huge amount of genres, but a dystopian that feels quite close to the world we live in now is always something that catches my attention. And the idea of everyone having a Q score that dictates everything about them, including their school placements, was really interesting…at least on the surface.

One main problem I had with the idea of the Q score was that I didn’t really know what it was supposed to measure. I originally thought that it was supposed to indicate a person’s level of intelligence, which would make sense, considering the amount of tests schoolchildren have to take. But then things like sick days affect Q scores, which…okay, I can kind of get behind that. But someone’s Q score being affected by their sibling’s behaviour seems really odd to me. I mean…considering that one of the main character’s children ends up being sent to a yellow school, wouldn’t something like that affect her family’s Q scores? But there’s nothing that’s mentioned about that.

There were some good parts to this book. It’s true that a lot of the views and politics actually do reflect what people are saying and posting about now, but…there were times I felt things were repeated when they didn’t need to be. Like one of the people who voted for the new system implied that she did so believing her own daughter would never be affected. And then that was repeated at least twice over, which was unnecessary.

I did feel that Elena wasn’t nearly as intelligent as the narration tried to make her out to be. There were a lot of choices she made and things she did that, as someone as intelligent as she was supposed to be, really should have done better. The two friends she made were more prepared than she was for the yellow school she went to…and it’s really clear that she had no plan for actually rescuing her daughter. And her reliance on Malcolm, given their history, just felt incredibly foolish.

I would have preferred there to be much fewer, if any, flashbacks. Most of them seemed entirely unnecessary, and those like the scenes after giving birth to Freddie just reiterated what had already been confirmed through the book. And the time in the yellow school was actually a much smaller part of the plot, considering how important the events were to the ending…which, in my opinion, was way too dragged out in a way that was not only unnecessary but seemed entirely unrealistic.

I think the book would have been much better and engaging if either Freddie or Ann had been the main character, not their mother. Despite the fact that Elena apparently came up with the idea for cards (or inspired them? I actually didn’t really understand how it went from that to their whole nation adopting the Q score), she felt like a really passive character…and, at times, was actually pretty boring. I just couldn’t engage with her for most of the book.

On the whole, I’m glad I gave this book a chance and did read it (especially as I was gifted it for Christmas), but I think it could have been better. The flashbacks could have been cut out, and the narrator could have been much closer to the problems in the society than someone who felt removed until it affected her personally. I mean…imagine being at a silver school with a group of your friends, and some of them get dropped to the lowest possible school…even though you know they’re too smart for that? It would feel more impactful to see the events through the eyes of someone who has grown up in that society.

Venom: The Last Dance

Posted by cat2002116 on November 17, 2024
Posted in: Marvel, Movies, Reviews, Superhero. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Very similar to Deadpool, Venom is one of those Marvel antiheroes that I always know I’ll really enjoy every movie they’re in…very similar to Deadpool, if I’m honest. And Venom, despite not being human, is actually a lot of fun…and I very much enjoy his friendship with Eddie.

I liked the opening scene, where Venom and Eddie are in a different dimension and then switch over to their original one. However, I would have liked it if a bit more of the plot had focused on the other dimensions. That whole opening scene where they’re in one dimension and then end up in another one really just felt unnecessary…but honestly, that was the only ‘bad’ part of the movie, in my opinion. Well, apart from the main villain of the piece being mostly offscreen…but the danger from the xenophages felt real.

One of the main things I liked about this movie was that none of the symbiotes really felt like bad guys. Yes, they’re parasites…but I don’t think they can really be blamed for that. As is indicated in the movie, they’re fleeing from another threat…but the trailer of the movie did seem to indicate that the symbiotes were the main enemy of the movie. It was nice that they weren’t and in fact ended up allying themselves with the humans by the end.

I found it really easy to empathise with most of the characters in the movie…at least the humans and the symbiotes. I liked the fact that Strickland wasn’t really a ‘bad’ guy, even though there was a lot of conflict between him and Eddie and Venom. Of course, if I’m honest, the conflicts were there for very good reason…and I’m not entirely sure I could disagree with Strickland’s perspective about things. Interestingly enough, the actor who plays Strickland, Chiwetel Ejiofor, also appears in the MCU as Karl Mordo. While I doubt very much that the two characters are connected in any way, I feel like it would be awesome if there is a connection, given that the opening scene of this movie indicates that the multiverse does in fact exist in this movie.

I did feel there was a great balance of humour and action in this movie, and I loved that Mrs. Chen put in an appearance. I will say that the whole dance scene, while a lot of fun, did have me shaking my head. Venom feels like such a child sometimes, always wanting things now with no thought to the consequences. I felt that the stakes were high in this movie, and by the end, I was on the edge of my seat, waiting to see how things would resolve.

This film was a great addition to the Venom franchise, and I kind of hope that there’ll be future movies, even though it might be unlikely. But if you enjoy Marvel, and especially if you like Venom, you should enjoy this movie.

Oh – and there’s one end credits scene that’s kind of fun, but no others past that, so no need to stay until the very end of the credits.

Smile 2

Posted by cat2002116 on November 16, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews, Supernatural. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

I watched the first movie when it came out at the cinema, so when the sequel came out at the cinema, I was immediately interested in watching it.

If you’ve seen the first movie, then you’ll probably have a fairly good idea of what to expect from this one. It pretty much picks up only a short time after the original, with Joel (the police officer cursed at the end of Smile) trying desperately to find someone to pass the Smile curse onto. His initial intention is to subject a murderous criminal to the curse…but, of course, if the curse had been passed onto a bad guy, the movie would be very different to the one we got.

The curse passes on to a drug dealer, Lewis, who doesn’t have a very big role to play…outside of being the person who passes the curse onto the main character of the movie, Skye Riley. Still, even though he doesn’t appear much in the movie, I felt that Lukas Gage did a really good job of portraying Lewis after he was infected by the Smile entity.

As is made clear in the first movie, the Smile entity feeds on trauma…but all of its victims seem to have more trauma than just seeing someone else kill themselves. I don’t know what kind of trauma Lewis was suffering, but there was a video he posted to social media that seemed to hint at a deeper kind of trauma that hadn’t been explored.

Skye Riley was an interesting character in this movie. She’d obviously had some very traumatic events in her life prior to witnessing Lewis kill himself in front of her (in an extremely gruesome way, to be honest; the movie does not hold back on the gore). I liked that the movie didn’t reveal everything that had happened all at once, instead showing more and more through the flashbacks as the movie went on.

I also found it easy to empathise with Skye, especially seeing how she was treated as an object by everyone around her, from her mother, who was her manager, to her fans…including a man who was clearly a stalker and who is later used by the Smile entity to toy with Skye even more.

One of the main things the Smile entity does is play with its victims’ minds, leaving them unsure of what’s real and what isn’t. The movie does a really good job of showing this at times, but there’s a whole scene in Skye’s apartment with her backup dancers coming at her. This is obviously not real, and something that, in my opinion, kind of pushed the movie into (perhaps unintentional) comedy.

Sadly, although there were some good parts to the movie, it fell into the same trap of so many other horror movies I’ve seen, and the same kind of trap that the first Smile movie fell into. As soon as the entity appears in its own form, it loses a lot of the horror and fear that the movie’s built up to, because what you don’t see is always scarier than what you do see. (It Follows was a really good example of this).

I did enjoy this movie for what it was, but I don’t think I’d get anything out of watching it a second time. There were some very predictable scenes and, of course, the movie did end on a cliffhanger. If you did enjoy the first Smile movie, though, you’ll probably enjoy this one too.

Salem’s Lot

Posted by cat2002116 on November 9, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews, Supernatural. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment


I didn’t see the original version of Salem’s Lot, but when I saw this movie advertised, I thought it might be a more unique horror…and then I realised it was about vampires, which I feel are massively over-used, but then again, it was based on one of Stephen King’s novels, so I thought it might be worth watching.

I did find this movie quite slow, almost boring, to start with. And I didn’t really like Susan as a character; she came across as really annoying and not that smart when she didn’t recognise Ben (despite reading his book when she first meets him). I also really disliked how she ‘asked him out’, because honestly…it just felt like she was desperate.

I will say that I appreciated how the vampires were normal vampires; by that, I mean they obeyed the lore of vampires, such as burning in sunlight, being weak against crosses, and having to be invited in. However, it made very little sense to me that Father Callahan couldn’t keep the cross lit up. I’m pretty sure that the other characters using the crosses didn’t have faith; or, at least, it wasn’t indicated they did (just going to church doesn’t make you a Christian, I’m afraid).

Probably my favourite character in this movie was Mark. In comparison to the adults around him, Mark was the only one who not only realised what was going on, but was also prepared to do something about it. Yes, Matt Burke also figured out pretty quickly what was going on, but he felt woefully unprepared for dealing with the vampires in comparison to Mark…whose comment of, ‘I guess I’ve gotta kill Barlow,’ really sums up his goal as a character.

I really didn’t like Susan’s mother, Anne, even before it was revealed that she was working with Barlow. I found it really hard to understand why she was so hostile towards Ben, and I didn’t really know her well enough for her about-face to have much of an impact when it was revealed.

I also really liked Dr. Cody as a character, I have to admit. Much like Mark (who was a child, of course), she was pretty competent and capable…at least after she dealt with the shock of there actually being vampires to deal with.

The other thing that was surprising was how quickly the vampire infection spread through the town. Considering that the lore they found said vampires rising could take time, the whole infection spreading so quickly and only a few people being aware of it stretched my suspension of disbelief quite a bit.

As I mentioned above, I did find the movie quite boring at first, though it picked up later on. I’m happy I decided to go and see it, but I don’t think I’d watch the movie again.

The Substance

Posted by cat2002116 on November 6, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews, Science Fiction. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I was very intrigued when I saw this movie advertised. The basic premise wasn’t an entirely original one. After all, people have been obsessed with preserving youth and beauty for years…but the idea of the Substance was a pretty intriguing one, I have to admit.

I thought that the movie did a really good job of showing the decline Elisabeth was experiencing, due to those around her considering her ‘too old’ to continue being the face of the aerobics show she was part of. I was able to empathise her with a lot as a character…and all of her interactions with Harvey, and Harvey as a character, just made my skin crawl. In parts of the movie, he came across as larger than life, but in a really grotesque way that I felt worked really well.

When Elisabeth uses the Substance for the first time, I honestly thought it had killed her. I know she had a whole lot of stuff that implied the bodies continued to live while the ‘other self’ was in control, but I honestly couldn’t see how Elisabeth had managed to survive such a gruesome ‘birth’.

Very similar to most horror movies, the relationship between Elisabeth and her younger self, Sue, starts off as a symbiotic one; an arrangement that’s beneficial for both of them. It is sad that Elisabeth ends up not doing anything other than sitting around while she’s in control, but that also fits in with the feel of the movie, so it’s not that much of a surprise even if it is sad.

Obviously, things start going bad when Sue takes more than her fair share of time from Elisabeth. The results of just one day are immediate and intense, showing Elisabeth with an aged hand.

What doesn’t make a lot of sense to me is that whoever made the Substance basically gave up all responsibility. Elisabeth calls to complain about Sue; Sue calls to complain about Elisabeth. All the person on the other end tells them is that they need to remember they’re one. Considering how bad the effects of using more of the spinal fluid are on the original person, I would have thought that the Substance’s creator would be more strict with the possibility of taking too much. Then again, I’m not really sure what the organisation/person selling the Substance is getting out of it anyway.

I will say that, towards the end of this movie, it was very much body horror and pretty much over the top. By that point, I kind of lost some interest in the movie, as I felt it was shock value.

I will say that I enjoyed this movie for what it was, and there were some really good elements to it. I would have liked to see more of the world expanded upon…and more from those actually in control of the Substance.

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Posted by cat2002116 on November 5, 2024
Posted in: Movies, Reviews, Superhero. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

So, this Spider-Man movie picks up more or less straight after Far From Home ends, with everyone in the world knowing that Peter Parker is Spider-Man.

I thought the strongest part of this movie was Peter dealing with the fact that everyone where he lives is now aware of who he is, though I have to admit, it seemed kind of wrong for MJ and Ned to be rejected simply because they knew Spider-Man. After all, they weren’t doing anything…and in fact had been in the middle of the danger in the previous movie.

I really loved Matt Murdock’s brief cameo in the movie. It was awesome to see him representing Peter Parker as a lawyer, only to reveal himself as something more when he catches the brick thrown through the window. I would have liked to see a bit more of him, perhaps interacting with Peter as Daredevil.

I really liked the interactions between Peter and Stephen in this movie, especially as the lines in the multiverse began to blur. Having just seen the two Amazing Spider-Man movies the weeks before, I was happy to see a reappearance of the two main villains from those, though I actually would have liked to see one of the versions of Harry, especially as he is mentioned by Peter Two.

And, yes, that brings me to the three Peter Parkers. That was one of my favourite parts of the movie, especially the first time watching it. I remember being so happy when Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man appeared for the first time!

I loved all of the interactions between Peter One, Peter Two, and Peter Three. Peter Three comments that he always wanted brothers, and I love how encouraging they are to each other, and how they bond over their individual experiences. I especially loved when Peter One told the other two Peters about him being part of the Avengers and they were immediately supportive…and at the same time asking what the Avengers were.

There were a lot of great moments of humour in this movie (Marvel does that particularly well), but I thought there were some really great serious moments as well. And, of course, it was awesome to see villains like Electro and the Green Goblin from the previous Spider-Man movies. What happened to May made me really sad, though.

I felt the final interaction between Peter One and Stephen Strange was really bittersweet, especially considering Stephen’s reluctance to actually cast the spell. I liked the fact that Stephen seemed to have grown fond of Peter by the end of the movie…but I absolutely hated Peter’s decision not to tell MJ and Ned the truth.

I’m really hoping that there will be another Spider-Man movie in the MCU, as I would love to see this version of Peter get something like a happy ending. And if it’s at all possible, I would love to see Peter Two and Peter Three make an appearance in a future movie; especially as Andrew Garfield is my favourite Spider-Man!

Never Let Go

Posted by cat2002116 on November 5, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Seeing this movie advertised, I thought it was going to be more of a claustrophobic horror…and when I went to see it, I wasn’t disappointed.

For a lot of the movie, I was questioning what was real and what might only be in the characters’ heads. Apart from the forms the Evil took, the only characters I got to spend any time with were Momma, Nolan and Samuel. Because of that, I felt that the family relationship in this movie was one of the strongest parts of it. I really liked the fact that Nolan and Samuel were so different, with Samuel fully believing and trusting everything their mother told them, and Nolan beginning to question things, especially as neither he or Samuel were able to see the Evil.

Despite not being sure of what was real or not, I felt that Halle Berry did a really good job of showing Momma’s state of mind through the movie. Even if I wasn’t sure what was real and what wasn’t, I could tell that she really cared about and loved her sons. Maybe she was wrong in what she believed…but considering what she thought had happened to the rest of the world, it seemed like she was doing what she believed was the best for her children. On the other hand, it was quite obvious that Nolan and Samuel’s growth had been stunted, and that they were malnourished. Some of what they were eating seemed like it shouldn’t have been edible at all.

I really liked the relationship between Samuel and Nolan, and how Nolan was trying to take care of Samuel all through the movie. I felt that the conflicts between them added a lot more depth to the movie; especially towards the end, as the movie became more like an actual horror, rather than a survival story (which is what it came across as at first).

I did feel that the ending of the movie dragged on. I would have liked the movie a bit more if it had ended before Nolan and Samuel had been rescued, as that scene made it clear that their mother had been lying about the state of the rest of the world. Honestly, I felt this movie would have been a lot stronger if the ending had been left a bit more ambiguous.

On the whole, I did enjoy this movie. I especially enjoyed the conflicts between the three main characters, and the way Nolan and Samuel responded differently to their mother’s beliefs. While some parts of the movie were a little predicatable, and I think it could have ended a bit earlier, I did really enjoy watching it, and can recommend it as a good horror movie to watch.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

Posted by cat2002116 on November 4, 2024
Posted in: Movies, Reviews, Superhero. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I obviously watched this movie when it originally came out, so I knew what was coming when I went to see it at the cinema a second time. But I did really enjoy seeing this movie for a second time.

Since this movie was set directly after Endgame, it was a bit different in tone compared to the first Tom Holland as Spider-Man movie. For one thing, it started with a tribute video to all of those who’d died during the events of Endgame, which was really bittersweet.

I liked the fact that Peter was planning to tell MJ how he felt. It was nice to see MJ get a bit more development in this movie as well. I liked her character in the previous movie, but in this one, she was a really great, interesting character. And I really loved her interactions with Peter. I especially loved when she assumes he’s going to tell her he’s Spider-Man, as it makes a lot of sense that MJ would be able to work it out, since she’s pretty smart.

I thought there were some really nice moments of humour in this movie, especially when Peter was wearing the EDITH glasses and desperately trying to delete a picture…only to accidentally send a nuke towards the bus he was on with his fellow students.

I thought the whole thing with Mysterio started out as really interesting – and honestly, I would have liked it if he had not in fact turned out to be a bad guy. Especially considering the route the next movie took with the multiverse.

I really liked that Ned and Betty had a relationship, and they had some really cute moments in this movie. I didn’t think it made sense that they broke up, as it would have been nice to see them continue to date and Ned having to keep Peter’s secret identity from his girlfriend.

I liked that Flash had a little more depth to him this movie, even though he was still a major jerk. It was pretty cute that he really likes Spider-Man, and even says that Spider-Man is better than Mysterio…although he’s still a real jerk to Peter.

There were a lot of great character moments in this movie, along with a lot of great tension. And the movie did end on something of a cliffhanger, which set it up nicely for the third movie in the series.

All told, I really did enjoy this movie. It was a great sequel to Homecoming and I really enjoyed the relationships between the characters. It was a great movie to watch a second time through and I would probably watch it again in the future.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Posted by cat2002116 on September 29, 2024
Posted in: Comedy, Dark Fantasy, Horror, Movies, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

While I haven’t actually seen the original Beetlejuice, I knew enough about the movie to decide I was interested enough to watch the sequel now that it’s out. And I have to say that I really did enjoy this movie, for all it was extremely over the top and quite gross and even disturbing in places.

I really liked the relationship between Lydia and her daughter, Astrid, and how it seemed to mirror Lydia’s own relationship with her stepmother growing up. I really like Jenna Ortega as an actress, thanks to the latest Scream movies and Wednesday, and I thought she was really good in this movie. I was able to empathise with her conflicted relationship with her mother…and it was interesting that Astrid didn’t believe in Lydia’s ability, given that her mother was so famous for her abilities. I will say that, at the beginning of the movie, I wasn’t sure if Lydia’s abilities were actually real or not…at least until she saw the ghost in the women’s bathroom, who I would have liked to know a bit more about.

I liked the buildup to Beetlejuice being summoned, although I’m not sure if I was misunderstanding the rules of the whole thing, as he kept appearing to Lydia even before being summoned. Maybe he wasn’t able to actually manipulate the world of the living until his name was spoken three times, though?

I think Michael Keaton does a really good job of portraying Beetlejuice, though it completely threw me when the movie suddenly turned into a foreign language film (complete with subtitles) as he proceeded to reveal his history with Delores. I will say that was certainly an…interesting way of showing their history, and I guess it fit in with the weird feel of the whole movie, but even so.

I liked seeing the absolute chaos that the afterlife was, as I felt that was a really creative part of this movie. I also really loved the music sequence with the Soul Train to the Great Beyond…and that scene in particular felt very tense. I also really liked Wolf’s character, even though he was just an actor who’d died while filming his role of a policeman. Was it a bit over the top? Yeah, though I get the feeling that’s how it’s supposed to be. But I was able to follow the movie pretty well, even without having seen the original, and I thought it was a lot of fun.

If you enjoyed watching the first Beetlejuice movie, I would definitely recommend watching this one. Even if you haven’t, but this genre is still one you’d watch, I would definitely recommend giving this one a try.

Speak No Evil

Posted by cat2002116 on September 23, 2024
Posted in: Horror, Movies, Reviews. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I don’t think I’ve seen the original Speak No Evil, but I was intrigued by this one…especially as I really like James McAvoy as an actor. And he definitely did not disappoint in this movie.

I will say that this movie was basically what you see on the tin…or, rather, what you see in the trailer. A couple with their daughter meet another couple with their son while on holiday, and the couple with their son invite the other couple and their daughter to come on holiday with them. Everything seems fairly normal and straightforward, right?

Well…no. Because once Ben and Louise with their daughter Agnes go to visit Paddy and Ciara and their son Ant, things begin to take a more sinister turn. It starts off as fairly innocent enough, with Paddy giving Louise (who’s already stated she’s a vegetarian) some meat to try, and the sheets on the bed Ben and Louise are given having obvious stains on them. These are both fairly mild things when taken alone, but it doesn’t take long before the situation begins to escalate.

I did feel that the tension built really well in this movie. I liked Louise, and even if I thought Ben was kind of weak at times, the two of them had a depth to their relationship that came across really well. I’m not sure if this was deliberate, but it definitely felt like there was some sexual tension between Paddy and Ben. It would have been good if that had been explored a little bit more, as if Ben had been struggling with his sexuality, that would have added more depth to his character, in my opinion.

I didn’t mind the children characters so much, but I did find Agnes to be slightly irritating at times. For instance, I can understand her anxiety, but her reaction of kicking the back of the seat in the car that nearly resulted in a crash absolutely should have been addressed. I also felt that, for her age, she didn’t seem to pick up on any of the clues Ant was giving her that something was seriously wrong between him and his parents. Given that she had enough presence of mind to fake her period when she finally realised something was wrong, the only reason I can think that she didn’t realise something was wrong was because her character was dumbed down. Really, all of them were dumbed down.

I felt that this movie worked pretty well as an action movie, and there were some great cat and mouse scenes towards the end of the movie. But as I said at the beginning of this review, there were no real surprises in this movie. There are no twists and turns, but the actors and the characters they portray definitely make this movie worth watching, in my opinion.