Linda Naughton's Blog: Self-Rescuing Princesses, page 4

Night Agent - TV Review

Good characters elevate this twisty spy thriller.

Netflix's The Night Agent is the kind of old-fashioned chase thriller you don't see much any more, reminiscent of the Bourne series or 24.  

The show follows FBI agent Peter Sutherland (Gabriel Basso), whose heroism during a metro train bombing earns him a position in the top-secret agency called "Night Action." His job is to analyze intel and man the emergency hotline that "never rings", a drab assignment he hopes will be a stepping stone to becom...

Miraculous - Movie/TV Review

The popular kids superhero series is reimagined in a new Netflix movie.

My kids have long been fans of Miraculous, an animated superhero series that's been airing on Netflix (and later Disney+) for the past few years.  In the show, two French teens are entrusted with magic jewelry that lets them transform into super-powered alter-egos: Ladybug and Cat Noir. Together they battle to save Paris from an endless parade of lackeys sent by arch-enemy Hawkmoth.

Aimed at tweens, Miraculous has cartoonish v...

Hijack - TV Series Review

Idris Elba carries an overstuffed but entertaining thriller series.

What if you stretched your typical "plane gets hijacked and hero saves the day" movie thriller into a miniseries? That seems to be the conceit behind Hijack, a limited series streaming on Apple TV. Starring the awesome Idris Elba as a corporate negotiator trapped on the hijacked airliner, Hijack's extended run-time is both a blessing and a curse.

The highlight of the series is Elba himself. His charisma makes him believable as hig...

Rings of Power - Season 1 Review

This muddled LoTR prequel has some bright points.

I tried watching Rings of Power back when it first came out. An episode-and-a-half in, and I was bored out of my mind. I put it on the back of the streaming queue until my son, now a huge LoTR fan, asked to watch it. Fortunately, it did get better. Despite the poor pacing, uneven writing, and some bland characters, we both ultimately enjoyed revisiting Middle Earth.

SPOILER ALERT! This review contains spoilers for Rings of Power Season 1. BIG SPOI...

Cassandra in Reverse - Book Review

A Uniquely Entertaining Time-Travel Tale

Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale is a twist-filled time-travel story that's like Groundhog Day meets Sliding Doors.

Book Description:

Cassandra Penelope Dankworth is a creature of habit. She likes what she likes (museums, jumpsuits, her boyfriend, Will) and strongly dislikes what she doesn't (mess, change, her boss drinking out of her mug). Her life runs in a pleasing, predictable order…until now.

She's just been dumped.
She's just been fired.
Her local caf...

Blackout Trail - Goddess Fish Blog Tour Roundup

I had the opportunity to do a virtual book tour through Goddess Fish Promotions last month, visiting literary blogs over a 2-week period. This tour included interviews, guest posts, and reviews of my novel Blackout Trail.

I'm grateful to all the hosts on this tour for allowing me to visit their blogs. I'd also like to thank Goddess Fish for organizing the tour. They did an awesome job, and I heartily recommend the experience for other indie authors.

I catalogued the stops on the tour below for ea...

The Good Doctor - Book Review

A tense, twisty medical thriller.

I love medical dramas—ER being my favorite—so I was intrigued by the premise of The Good Doctor by Jessica Payne. Described as "Grey's Anatomy with murder," it's a well-done, tense medical thriller filled with twists.

Book Description:

I finally have everything I’ve ever wanted: a career saving lives, my dream home among the pines, and my caring fiancé, Elton. He doesn’t know about my past. And I’ll do anything to keep it that way…

I’m so excited for my life with El...

Jurassic World Dominion - Movie Review

"Nobody said there'd be bugs."

I recently re-watched Jurassic World Dominion with my kids, and realized I never reviewed it when it first came out a year ago. I wanted to rectify that and  complete my collection of Jurassic World reviews.

Much has been said already about the movie's flaws: thin villains, a plot that hinges on one ludicrous contrivance after another, and above all--a premise that utterly failed to capitalize on the "dinos loose in the world" setup of the prior film in favor of frea...

Women in War Stories - 2023 Edition

It's become an annual Memorial Day tradition for me to highlight women in war stories, in honor of the soldiers (of all genders) who have given their lives in our conflicts. Apologies for being a day late this year (technical difficulties with a new post scheduling system).

Read other editions of my Women in War Stories series.

This year, I'm featuring two WW2 dramas.

The Diamond Eye - a fascinating novel about the remarkable Russian sniper Lyudmila Pavlichenko. The Imitation Game - a tense espiona...

One Chicago - TV Review

Fighting crime and saving lives, the One Chicago franchise features a slew of tough women.

I've been watching the One Chicago franchise (Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, and Chicago Med) since Fire premiered in 2012, though now I only follow Fire and PD. Despite being among my favorite shows, the early seasons bugged me with the storylines they gave their female leads.

Sure, they got to participate in the 'action', fighting crimes or saving patients. But while Voight walked a dangerous "dirty cop" line,...