TV
Continuum: I discovered this show thanks to a tip from a friend of mine. It's a Canadian show set in Vancouver, and it alternates between 2077, where Kiera Cameron, the lead character, is working as a police officer in pursuit of a terrorist group named Liber8, and 2012, where she and the terrorists end up when their execution goes awry. The first season was only 10 episodes, and I just finished watching it. I liked how the plot thickened with each episode, how the scope of what happened became wider and more interesting, and how morally complicated the episodes sometimes are. It can be really difficult to find a good sci-fi show on TV, but this one is particularly well done. Plus, fans of the X-Files will appreciate that the actors who played The Smoking Man and Krycek both appear in the series. My favorite part: Kellog, because it's so hard to figure out exactly what his agenda is.
Bones: We've finally caught up and are now watching the current season. It's been a rough go for Angela and Hodgins, but I'm a little leery of where the show's going with Pelant. He's becoming borderline superhuman, and that worries me. Up until now, I thought he was the scariest villain the show's had yet, but I'm afraid he might end up on the cartoonish end of the scale. I fully expect to see him again before the end of the season. Sweets is really disappointing me this season--for a psychologist, he's spectacularly bad at diagnosing his own destructive behavior, but maybe that's the point. Still, Sweets, you're letting me down. The subplot about Booth in the Derby episode was touching. I love how Booth and Brennan both alternately frustrate me and make me love them.
Person of Interest: We're a few episodes behind here. Reese is treading in dangerous waters, and I'm amazed by how Carter's character is changing, but in a good way. I've always liked her character, so I'm digging the somewhat vigilante edge she's developing. I'm still worried about Fusco and hoping his problems are going to work out okay. What I do like about Reese being locked up, though, is it gives us more of a chance to see Harold in action, which I really like. I thought his connecting with the young computer genius was moving. Actor crossover alert: Why, it's Finn without his Southern accent and his courtship of Cam's daughter!
How are the mid season shows? Any good ones I ought to look into? We've still got Battlestar Gallactica to finish up, as well as 30 Rock, and I've got my eye on Downton Abbey, but I'd still love the lowdown on any new shows worth seeing.
Books
This was one of those books that had been sitting on my Goodreads "to read" list for quite some time, so I snapped it up when Amazon offered it as a Daily Deal. I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you don't know this about me yet, I majored in French and used to be a French teacher, so it probably goes without saying I love anything and everything that references France. I loved how Perkins describes Paris, and I was busy making a mental list of all the places I need to try to visit when I go to Paris this summer. And Anna's right on when she talks about how sublime macarons are. They are more than just a food, they are an experience. Anyway, I loved the characters and thought the love story was fantastic. It evolved naturally and I could understand why the characters loved one another. The book was also laugh-out-loud funny in some parts, yet it was also reflective and touching. Plus, I rooted for Anna all the way, even when she was kind of being a jerk. This was a really enjoyable read.
The concept of this book sounded intriguing, but I was left feeling rather ambivalent about it. There were some elements that disturbed me, such as Faith's date with Wade. At first, I thought the book painted what happened as okay, and I was having trouble continuing with it. I was relieved by what ultimately happened, but I still thought there were some alarming edges to the romances. In general, I don't think the relationships portrayed were healthy ones. I also didn't really understand what motivated Clara, who seems a bit one-dimensional. There's some good action in the book, but it takes a while to build up. Still, the world wasn't fully realized and some things about it just didn't make sense to me.
Warning, there will be a few minor spoilers if you haven't read Dollhouse. For a little while, I was more interested in what was happening with Jessamine. I enjoyed her back story and liked that it added new facets to her character. I disliked her so much that I was happy that Allyn made me feel sympathetic for her in the end. One of my favorite tricks is when an author can provide a different perspective on a seemingly irredeemable character and make me look at that character in a new light. The action surrounding Cassie ramped up a lot at the end of the book, and some interesting new elements were added to the story, along with a twist that took me by surprise. I'm looking forward to the next book.
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