We may have been given complimentary copies and/or access for review purposes to any products, and/or visual or audio media mentioned below. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own.
Books: The Villa
Today we are recommending The Villa by Rachel Hawkins. An offer from her friend, Chess, to spend the summer at a villa in Italy is a chance for Emily to reconnect with her former best friend and also to recover from the mysterious aliment that's been plaguing her as well as from the subsequent split with her husband. The Villa Aestas, however, which was formerly the Villa Rosato, was the site of a notorious murder in the 1970s. Emily quickly finds herself immersed in uncovering the secret of what really happened then while at the same time trying to uncover what secrets Chess may be hiding now before another tragedy occurs.
This is a steaming cauldron of a novel about friendship and betrayal. It is wildly unpredictable and just when you think you know what is going to happen, it swerves in another direction. The ending is completely surprising.
TV Series: The Staircase
The HBO limited television series, The Staircase, is based on the case of Michael Peterson who was accused of killing his second wife Kathleen on the staircase of their home in 2001. He contended that she died due to a fall down the stairs. The case was also the subject of a French documentary series.
This series is a little hard to get into at first because there are so many characters, and it is hard to keep track of who they all are. Of course, they are all real people relevant to the case, and eventually, it does become easier although not for several episodes.
The story is interesting, but it movies along rather slowly for the most part, and it perhaps didn't need to be so many episodes. The story takes place in three different timelines, and the jumps back and forth can be confusing. However, the writers do a pretty good job of presenting a balanced view of the case and not completely taking one side or other particularly in the way each of the three theories of what could have happened to Kathleen is fully acted out.
The acting led by Oscar winner, Colin Firth as Peterson and Emmy winner, Toni Collette is great. Firth in a rare turn as a mostly unlikeable character is especially good. Both he and Collette were nominated for Emmy's for their performances in the mini-series.
The series which consists of 8 one-hour episodes is now available on DVD from Warner Bros Home Entertainment as well as digitally for rental or purchase. The DVD set consists of three discs. Along with all 8 episodes, they include extras like featurettes on each episode, a set tour, and more. For more information, visit https://www.warnerbros.com/tv/staircase
And that's our view. Tune in tomorrow for Where-To-Go Wednesday.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment