by Sterling Preston
\n
\nBOOK REVIEW:<\/b>
\n
\nStar-Crossed<\/i>, by Linda Collison (Knopf)
\nhttp:\/\/www.myspace.com\/lindacollison<\/p>\n
When Patricia Kelley stows away on a ship bound for Barbados, she plans to claim her father\u2019s estate there. Her native Britain is at war with France, and the merchant ship she hides on has been contracted by the British government to deliver munitions. But Patricia is not interested in politics; she only wants to reach the Caribbean isles and live her life in peace.<\/p>\n
She catches a ride out to the ship with a group of prostitutes the night before it sails. Taking advantage of the fact that the sailors are drunk, she avoids molestation and sneaks away to a hiding place to settle in for the voyage. Of course it is only a matter of time before she is found and is subjected to a series of adventures.<\/p>\n
By day she works in indentured servitude to the ship\u2019s surgeon \u2013 certainly a light sentence for a stowaway – but by night she chases spiritual freedom and learns the ways of the ship.<\/p>\n
Romance and adventure at sea are subject matter ripe with opportunity, and author Linda Collison mines them well. With the issue of sex never quite treated graphically, this historical novel could be a popular choice for both young and old readers alike.<\/p>\n
::
\n
\nMOVIE REVIEW:<\/b>
\n
\nMama and Damian<\/i> (Trinka Five Films)
\nThe characters in this full-length feature are a bizarre lot. Mama, an S&M mother, has a part-bear\/part-boy child named Damian. She also keeps a live-in gentleman drunk boyfriend, whose decadent nephew (channeling Philip Seymour Hoffman) has come for a visit. There\u2019s a Nazi grandfather who lives in the basement, a trailer-trash family who lives \u201cin the backyard,\u201d and the children are treated to cookies and beer after school. This absurd, cult-ish comedy ultimately seems to be telling a story about relationships and coming of age. I particularly enjoyed the scene in which Mama throws her boyfriend out of the house. At this writing, you can order your own autographed DVD for $20 from the website. [http:\/\/www.trinkafivefilms.com] SP<\/p>\n
::
\n
\nCD REVIEWS:<\/b>
\n
\nOr, The Whale <\/b> Light Poles and Pines <\/i>
\nThis debut album is a strong contender for the cd rotation during your next road trip through endless stretches of Americana. Like any co-ed ensemble worthy of your stereo, Or, the Whale make it sound so natural and easy that you can\u2019t help but think of how much fun it must be to be in their band. Hailing from San Francisco, they play roots-style country with a Pacific Northwest spirit of creativity. They sound educated without being pretentious, and their music is more likely a fit to the taste of the indie kids and 30-something coffee house crowd than to the true shit kickers out in Alabama or wherever. But then again, sneak it into a backwoods jukebox somewhere and you never know what might happen. As always, check out sample tracks available on their website or MySpace. \u201cSaint Bernard\u201d is definitely going to stay in my songs-to-listen-to-while-drinking collection for awhile. [http:\/\/www.myspace.com\/orthewhale, http:\/\/www.orthewhale.com] SP
\n
\nHarpies <\/b> Lily Wry<\/i>
\nOh yes! Fans of My Ruin, your day has come again. Well, minus the extra-gothic spoken word bits. Harpies front woman Nicola Honey alternates between singing melodies and screaming her voice box raw in a band that flawlessly executes the British metal sound. The cover art and publicity material touch on the theme of ocean-derived inspiration, but you can forget all that. Just turn it up loud and drown the pain. [http:\/\/www.myspace.com\/harpies] SP
\n
\nSound of the Blue Heart <\/b> Beauty?. . . <\/i>
\nAny artist that remotely lays down a Leonard Cohen vibe – like this one does on the first track \u2013 has my immediate attention, but I hesitate to mention it here. I don\u2019t want a cheap comparison to take away from your enjoyment of this album, and as we all know there is no one who does Cohen better than Cohen himself. But Johnny Indovina, former front man of an impressive band called Human Drama (they\u2019re quite interesting \u2013 check them you on YouTube if you like darkwave-ish music), has put out a solid record that is really, ultimately, a lullaby. The message I got out of it? Life is what it is, it teaches you what it teaches you, and it\u2019s okay. Just keep your way and sleep easy now. [http:\/\/www.soundoftheblueheart.com] SP
\n
\nMariJane Miracle<\/b> La Vie Est Dure!<\/i>
\nHere\u2019s a French experimental-electronic duo to check out. With tracks ranging from danceable to downright strange, vocalist Marie-Anne and her music-man Franck Sinistra are a band with a message. Unfortunately, I don\u2019t speak French so I\u2019m not sure what the message is. [http:\/\/www.marijane.fr] SP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
New Reviews by Sterling Preston BOOK REVIEW: Star-Crossed, by Linda Collison (Knopf) http:\/\/www.myspace.com\/lindacollison When Patricia Kelley stows away on a ship bound for Barbados, she plans to claim her father\u2019s estate there. Her native Britain is at war with France, and the merchant ship she hides on has been contracted by the British government to deliver munitions. But Patricia is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[356],"class_list":["post-407","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive","tag-or-the-whale-and-other-reviews"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13004,"url":"https:\/\/reviewermag.com\/press\/2015\/12\/26\/new-movie-review-in-the-heart-of-the-sea\/","url_meta":{"origin":407,"position":0},"title":"new movie review: In The Heart Of The Sea","author":"Reviewer Rob","date":"December 26, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"[Blockbuster review]movie review: In The Heart Of The Sea by Bob Yunger Heart Of The Sea, big screen movie in 3D, directed by Ron Howard. 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