‘Finlay Donovan Is Killing It’ (2021) in a fun meta thriller
Book club book report: Elle Cosimano switches from YA to adult novels with a page-turning story of an unlikely sleuth.
Romance
‘Finlay Donovan Is Killing It’ (2021) in a fun meta thriller
‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ gives Rocket’s tear-jerking backstory
Movie review: James Gunn’s (likely) last Marvel movie is one of the MCU’s best, and ironically it proves that DC is in good hands going forward.
All 6 of Agatha Christie’s Mary Westmacott novels, ranked
Book list: The Queen of Crime wrote six non-mystery novels under the name Mary Westmacott that showcase her versatility … and her life story.
‘The Cartographers’ (2022) could’ve been mapped out better
Book club book report: A delicious idea based on a real-world event keeps Peng Shepherd’s novel compelling, but we’re left with roads to nowhere.
‘Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow’ (2022) the ‘Kavalier & Clay’ of video games
Book club book report: Gabrielle Zevin pens an emotional friendship drama while secretly building up the reader’s video-game knowledge.
A neurotic half-century: Every Woody Allen film, ranked
Movie list: I’ve obsessively made my list and checked it twice, and now I need counseling. Here are my rankings of Woody Allen’s films.
‘Sparkling Cyanide’ retains glitz, mystery for 1983 TV movie
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): This character-driven Agatha Christie novel smoothly moves four decades forward for a glamorous TV film.
‘Endless Night’ gets made into sneaky great 1972 film
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): Christie’s tricky-to-adapt 1967 gem makes an impressive transition to film, with surprises intact.
All 9 of Philip K. Dick’s non-SF novels, ranked
Book list: Despite being rejected by publishers in their time, Dick’s nine non-science fiction novels are worth celebrating as character-driven time capsules.
‘Death on the Nile’ (1978) faithfully and lavishly adapts Christie’s gem
Sleuthing Sunday (Movie review): Peter Ustinov gets a bit closer to Poirot than Albert Finney did, and the film stays true to the brilliant plot.