Summer Reading: The Night Circus

The Night Circus

Good Evening my friends. Tonight we discuss a fun little book for your reading pleasure.

The Night Circus is one of those books that pulls you in and doesn’t let you go. The circus changes the people who experience it. It becomes a part of them, a memory, a dream, a snippet of song or a whiff of pipe tobacco carried on the wind with the aromas of caramel, cinnamon, and cider. Once you buy your ticket and enter the gates, you will never be the same.

This is the beautifully written tale of two magicians, a challenge, and a venue. Lush descriptions of fantastical things abound. Although some of the plot lines get a bit convoluted with the skipping forward and backward in time, it all makes sense in the end. Some have criticized the story for being long on description and short on story. I disagree. As I read, trying as I normally do to pay attention to characters so as to keep them straight in my head, I noticed that the narrative kept getting hypnotic and dreamlike. The sights and sounds of the circus took over and rather than following a plot, one was simply watching what went on inside.

It’s this kind of immersive prose that I love the most and it’s the sort of stuff this book is made of. Totally enjoyable.

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Scarydad Review: This is the End

Okay, so I’m finding it difficult to write a review of This is the End. It’s not because of writer’s block or anything, it’s because there is so much fun and scary stuff going on that to tell you much about it might lead to spoilers and this is certainly a movie you don’t want to have spoiled.

Let’s try again…

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Shameless Plug for Awesome: Gerber Shard

Gerber Shard

 

A real quick and easy post tonight my friends. I just needed to sing the praises of this, my latest acquisition: The Shard, by Gerber.

The shard is about 3 inches long and apparently approved for air travel by the TSA. It boasts two flat-head and a philips driver, a pry bar, a wire stripper, a bottle opener, and for some reason the Gerber people think a lanyard hole is a function. That’s weird but I’m okay with it because I see their lanyard hole and raise them BACK SCRATCHER!!!

Yes, this thing is much better than a key for those hard to reach places when you need a little more reach.

Seriously though, I’ve had this tool for two days and I’ve already used it several times. It’s small, lightweight, and unobtrusive. My new favorite toy.

Scarydad Review: Kraken Rum

Kraken

Hello there everyone. Tonight I review a delightful little product that is sure to steal your heart: Kraken Black Spiced Rum.

I happened upon this stuff a while back and wanted to try it then. But you see, Bride and I misunderstood one another as to who would be visiting the liquor store prior to a holiday gathering and in a moment of sitcom-style hilarity, we ended up with two large bottles of another kind of rum instead of one. This glut in supply made the purchase of Kraken painfully unnecessary until recently.

I finally got my hands on this pretty little bottle and now it’s about time to tell you what I think.

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Scarydad Review: Cold Steel Gladius Machete

Cold Steel Gladius Machete

A few months ago I told you all how I really wanted the Gladius Machete from Cold Steel. Well, a couple of weeks ago I went from desire to possession when the sword arrived at my door. Today I got to use it for the first time so I’ll tell you all about it now.

 

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Scary Movie Night: Trick ‘r Treat

trick r treat

Sometimes a movie gets by you. Such was the case with Trick ‘r Treat until very recently. I had seen the movie poster but for whatever reason I never paid attention. Then one day I saw a picture of a Sam action figure and thought, “Man, that is cool.” So I watched the movie.

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Scarydad Review: Sinister

Sinister

Good evening my beloved. Tonight we discuss one of the most frightening films I’ve seen in a good long time. Seriously, I saw Sinister on Saturday evening and it’s still messing with me when I go to bed each night. In the sea of pop culture crap that tries to pass as “horror,” this is the real thing.

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Twins of Evil: Rob Zombie & Marilyn Manson Review

zombie

It’s probably the most anticipated and envy-inspiring show to have come along since Taylor Swift played here.. Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson, two masters of horror, together at last. I set an alarm to buy tickets the morning they went on sale and a little less than an hour later they were sold out. I’ve been looking forward to this… (more…)

Scary Movie Night: The Walking Dead

Walking Dead Hmmm. Two zombie related posts in one week? Must have been someone I ate. (Cue thunderclap and maniacal laughter.) Ah, my beloved Minions, I just can’t wait till I start doing videos and podcasts; I’ll be so funny you’ll laugh yourself to death! Ok, enough with the puns. It’s just been one of those days. And I know that our subject tonight is not a movie and is in fact a television show. I know this. But it’s also scary as hell and the third season is about to start and if you hurry you can get all caught up in time for the season premiere. (more…)