Top Hat at The Mayflower Southampton - Review

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This Tuesday I was lucky enough to go to the opening night of the musical Top Hat at The Mayflower Southampton.

The stage version of the 1930’s moving picture is brought to life by a cast of 45 actors, dancers and musicians. A comedic and whimsical tale of love between Jerry Travers (Tom Chambers - 'Holby City' and winner of 'Strictly Come Dancing') and Dale Tremont (Summer Strallen - 'Hollyoaks') is performed in full Hollywood glamour.

Beautiful costumes and cleverly constructed sets ensured that this light-hearted play enthralled audiences as the couple dance from song to song. The quips and wit of the original is captured perfectly by the show and had me laughing un-ashamedly more than once. The dancing provided by the whole cast was stunning and provided the ballroom charm even if the pieces sometimes felt a little long.

I felt that the first dance by Tom Chambers (and a very strained fake American accent) was a little shaky but the performance soon mellowed into an easy to watch and entertaining musical.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the show and recommend to all lovers of ballroom dancing and musicals alike.

4/5

Thanks for reading,

Love Rie xx

[Top Hat is at The Mayflower until September 24^th before touring around the UK.

For more information and to book tickets: http://bit.ly/nP19VZ

Thanks to Carswell Gould for the opportunity to watch the show]

Reading makes you a better person...

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A story published in the Guardian.co.uk today says that those that read fiction have increased empathy.

Participants in a Boston university where given an extract from two of my favourite children's authors - JK Rowling and Stephanie Meyer. They were then tested on a number of scales and results showed that those that read JK Rowling's extract from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone identified themselves with wizards, magic and broomsticks, where those who read Stephanie Meyer's extract from Twilight identified with blood, the undead and fangs!

So for those of you that need more encouragement to read, reading fantasy fiction improves your empathy to what you are reading about - which is a little strange when your are reading about characters that are, well, fictional! However, being more empathetic towards over people can only make you a better person in everyday life, and who doesn't love getting lost in something fantastical!

One of my English Literature teachers in college said he loved reading because it let him understand more about the world he might never get a chance to see, and I couldn't agree more!

So what ever your genre of choice, pick up a book today and make yourself more empathetic.

Thanks for reading,

Love Rie Reviews xx

Read the full story here: http://bit.ly/rpYeqA

Carte Blanche by Jeffery Deaver - Book Review

Deaver launches the James Bond character into the 21^st century with his own unique style. A must have read for any Bond lovers, and thriller readers alike, but don’t be put off if you don’t like cars and guns, there is a lot more besides.

Aesthetically this book is very pleasing to read, the flocked, rubberised cover grips your hands. The cover image resembles a wisp of smoke and the design is repeated at the beginning of every chapter. I have both a standard copy (white/red) and a limited edition signed copied (black/white) which are both equally eye catching on my shelf.

All hard backs are going to be a little weighty and as this was a holiday read this summer, I did feels a paperback would have perhaps been better for travelling with, but the story gripped me from beginning to end and was worth the extra weight!  

The title is also really clever. So much better than the titles such as Octopussy and The Man with the Golden Gun, it has wit and style that really fits in with the narrative.

The narrative is well, Bond like. The formulae of the books were followed well, Bond had a fast car (although not an Aston Martin) and he even got the girl. He’s cheeky, witty and is one step ahead of the enemy no matter how much in trouble he seems. Yet it was Deaver’s personal writing style that made this book, for me, so enjoyable to read.  Red herrings and the rollercoaster ride of revolutions make this a fast paced read, and it will keep you guessing until the end.

The villain is possibly one of the best yet. Routed in modern issues with a flaw that makes your skin crawl, he is the perfect persona of 21^st issues of recycling and corporate responsibility and their darker side.

It was the technical information on the cars and guns that was lost on me. I was laying in bed reading out the names of cars to my boyfriend to describe, as I had no idea what they were, if they were good or not or what they looked like. I understand that they are necessary for the book, but just not for me.

Overall I loved Jeffery Deaver’s take on the James Bond novel, with a fancy cover, good name and great characters. Yet the very Bond-ness of it means I prefer his own creations.

4/5

Thanks for reading,

Love Rie Reviews xx

Holiday Reading

Hi all,

I am off for a well deserved holiday tomorrow, and time-off for me equals reading! So I thought I would let you know what books I am taking away with me.

1. Carte Blanche by Jeffery Deaver
   I have been reading this one for a few weeks now, and thanks to a busy schedule I haven't managed to progress more than half way. But I am looking forward to getting stuck in and finishing this one.
   
2. Fear the Worst by Linwood Barclay
   I have no idea what this one is going to be like. It was recommended to me by my Mum, so it will keep me busy for a day :P
   
3. The Blue Nowhere by Jeffery Deaver
   One of the last books we have in the house that I haven't read. Again came highly recommended by my Mum as a good read.
   

It is going to be a crime thriller holiday! It is only a week away so all I can hope is this will be enough. But I always seem to find a book store selling English books no matter where I am and will undoubtedly be picking up some more!

Hope you are all having a great summer.

Thanks for reading,

Love Rie xx

The Burning Wire by Jeffery Deaver - Book Review

I have mentioned in previous reviews, Jeffery Deaver’s novels have been my first choice when it comes to the crime/thriller genre for a while now. My mum and I have read most (if not the full 28) books he has written. And as hard as it is to say – I think this has been my favourite one yet!

Front and back cover

I have always liked the way Deaver has adopted different themes in his novels. I find a lot of crime thrillers rely on tired psycho killers that go bump in the night. Where I enjoy Deaver's varied imagination of speed change artists (Vanished Man) to computer hackers (Roadside Crosses) and now electrical engineer’s using electricity or ‘juice’ as a weapon.

Lincoln Rhyme is at his finest in this book, with the mix of weakness and strength that makes him such a well-rounded character. His personal struggles with his health and mental stability provide as much of the action in this book as the killer's electrifying stunts do.

The twisting roller coaster of the final chapters, provides enough red herrings to fill an aviary. The main reason I regard it so high is it just kept me guessing till the end! The duel narrative sometimes had me a little confused with who the characters were chasing at each moment, but the book answered all necessary questions to satisfy any curiosities by the end of the book. 

Overall it was action packed roller coaster of false leads and detailed crime scene analysis that receives a rare 5/5.

A must read!

Thanks for reading,

Love Rie xx 

Spellbound by Kelley Armstrong - Book Review

I was really looking forward to the release of this book, as regular readers will know. To say I was disappointed would be a lie, I love Kelley Armstrong’s writing style, but I wanted more.

This book follows seamlessly from Waking the Witch. I wouldn’t be surprised if the two books were written very shortly after each other, or split in to two by an editor. Unlike the previous books which can jump between character sets (such as: Clay & Elena / Paige, Lucas & Savannah / Hope & Carl / Jamie Vegas) this one includes all of them in fantastic style. I have always liked how Armstrong crafts well rounded characters. With so many protagonists in one series of books it must be challenging to make each one individual, but they are all so well portrayed.

Savannah on cover of Waking the Witch

 The main protagonist of Spellbound, Savannah, is now pretty much the same age as me. I am sure this attributes to why I love reading about her so much. She is an awkward in between stage of her life, no longer a teenager but not quite an adult which I can emphasise with. Yet at times I just wanted to shake her and tell her to ‘woman up!’

The underlying sexual tension that is present in all the books was as frustrating as Waking the Witch and Personal Demon. There is a reason Women of the Otherworld is an adult fantasy fiction series and that is really getting down to the crux of the issue and running with it. The werewolf books are particularly satisfying on this level (with Frost Bitten being almost soft core erotic literature!) Yet I am confident that Savannah’s narrative will progress and we will soon see her healthy and happy.

I can’t help but think that the narrative is getting very same-y. The threat of exposure of a secret community of supernaturals has been tackled in Harry Potter! But I cannot deny it is conquered very differently in Spellbound, and avoids the trap of True Blood of creating a utopian world where everyone is learning to co-exist in harmony. I am really interested to see how this progresses and read how Armstrong can keep her series fresh.

It is quite clear (much to my pleasure) that the end is nowhere in sight for my favourite supernatural series. I like the way the series is going despite the lack of passion in the latter books.

My next hunt is for the limited edition copies of  the fan stories/novellas: Becoming, Counterfeit Magic and Angelic at my price range. If all else fails I will download them to get my fix! I have also just learnt that there is to be a new novella, Hidden, to be released 31/10/11 which gives insight into the lives of Clay and Elena’s twins age 4. I can’t wait to get hold of this!

In summary although this is not my favourite book in the series, I am loving how the narrative is progressing!

4/5

Thanks for reading,

Love Rie xx

My Time at Carswel Gould - Week Three

Now that I have just completed my third and final week at marketing communications agency Carswell Gould, I am here to report how it has all gone!

As I mentioned in my last post, my main task last week was to complete a digital marketing plan to launch the RIBs to the Limit challenge film. I put a lot of effort in creating an easy to read document and it appeared my efforts really paid off. Ed seemed genuinely impressed with how I kept the objectives in mind whilst creating a table of action points to carry the plan through.

This week I have been carrying out the action points I could, whilst talking to the rest of the team about the bits I couldn’t, such as improvements to the website. Firstly I updating the profiles of the RIBS to the Limit accounts on YouTube, Flickr and Facebook to ensure that Carswell Gould’s involvement in the challenge was more widely recognised. Next I added some copy and links on each of the videos currently hosted on YouTube so that people knew a feature length video is being released, Carswell Gould’s involvement and where to go for more information.  As Twitter can only have a 160 character profile, I have written and scheduled a list of tweets for inform current followers about the upcoming release of the challenge film, their presence at the PSP Southampton Boat Show and related topics. Lastly I have left the task of designing and coding an extra case study page to the CG site to Graham and Tom (design) and Rob (web development).

My first tweet apearing on the website's twitter widgit.

To break this task up I have also been given some smaller tasks including: proof reading, looking at a brief for a new client, writing and scheduling different online content for Twitter and Facebook, milk runs and made numerous rounds of tea and coffee!

The most memorable moment of this week has unfortunately been the London riots. The buzz in the office was replaced with people sharing news of the riots and their spread across England this Tuesday. When rumors started circulating online about problems in Southampton there were some meerkat moments of us all looking out the window as riot vans parked on the high street and sirens went past. Luckily nothing happened, but it was good to see how in touch the local police force was with social media. They channeled reliable news via Twitter that the office and the rest of Hampshire could follow and not the many rumors. And if all else failed we always had guard dog Scamp to look after us!

These last three weeks have gone so quickly, and I am sad to leave the office. However the time has not been wasted, and I have learnt so much about how social media can be used by individuals and businesses. I am taking away a bank of knowledge to help me improve my appearance online, and looking forward to using the skills I have learnt. Areas that I need to improve has also been highlighted, namely by spelling and grammar. When getting my work proof read it was evident that although no one is perfect, my work was needing a lot more corrections than others, and I will be concentrating on improving this in the future.

Thank you so much to the team at Carswell Gould for having me, and thanks to all the people that have come along and read how I have been doing. And most of all, thanks for the chocolates!

Love Rie / Marie Malyon xx