Tag Archives: book

What To Expect When You’re Expecting | Film Review

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I wanted to see something a bit different when I went to see this film and the stellar cast had me excited. The film is based on a self-help book by the same name by Heidi Murkoff.

The film has five couples all “expecting”. Elizabeth Banks has always been a wonderful and strong comedic actress and this film is no exception. She is proof that women can be beautiful and funny if casting directors give them a chance. Jennifer Lopez’s character and storyline is real and touching. She adopts with her husband after spending the 401K money on IVF. Cameron Diaz plays a celebrity fitness guru who wins Dancing With The Stars and get’s pregnant by her dance partner, played by Glee star Matthew Morrison. Diaz character is strong-willed and likes having it her own way.

Chris Rock is on top form as the leader of the ‘dudes group’. The dudes group is a support team for men with children. I really liked this film. The cast is superb and it is both funny and real at the same time. The story of a series of couples who are ‘expecting’ is one I have not seen done in a film before.

This film is positive about men and women. The characters are strong and I really liked the script. The film is funny and entertaining. A few of the cast were previously in Bridesmaids and some of that humour is there.

This film is a great night out at the cinema. Entertaining and funny. I liked how it was pro-men too. Chris Rocks says at the end: “When I was young, I used to think I was happy – but now I know I’m happy. Exhausted, but happy.”

Director: Kirk Jones. Cast: Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Banks, Chace Crawford, Anna Kendrick, Matthew Morrison, Dennis Quaid, Chris Rock.

Professionally Resting Interview: Lifting the Lid on Acting.

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The talented actor behind the blog Professionally Resting first caught my eye on Twitter. She is brave, witty and accurate about the downside of the acting industry. As an actor myself I just read her tweets/blog posts and nod. I just had to interview her for Frost, so here it is! I also have a guest post coming from her soon, so look out for that too.

What made you start your blog?

I’d been reading a few other acting blogs online and I soon realised that none really covered what it’s like to be an actual working actor. Many are written by actors who are constantly in work and that was something that I just couldn’t really identify with. Most actors I know spend a great deal of their time resting and I wanted to create something fun and supportive for those of us that regularly find ourselves within the unemployed majority. I also wanted to use it as an excuse to keep busy. There are days when there’s very little work coming in and having a blog to think about really keeps me feeling like I’m at least doing something creative.

Tell us a bit about yourself (without giving too much away)!

It’s always tough answering these questions without sounding like you’re on Blind Date! I’m in my late twenties and have been acting (on and off) since graduating from drama school in 2006. I had a break for a couple of years after getting a bit trapped in a temping job that became permanent. It was a horrible job but it meant I could have a couple of years actually earning money and being able to buy things that had previously been a luxury like food that isn’t on the reduced shelf. However, there’s nothing quite like a miserable job to remind you exactly what it is that you really want to be doing and that was the catalyst to making me find acting work again so that I could finally escape.


What do you think of the acting industry?

It’s very much a love/hate relationship. I regularly complain about it on Twitter and on my blog because it honestly drives me insane. It can feel that it often has more to do with luck than talent and you are completely at the mercy of those in control of the work that is out there. It often feels like many companies and channels operate a closed shop policy and I think many of them are guilty of working with the same very tiny gang of actors time and time again. I read an article recently that said there was a very small pool of talent out there which simply isn’t true. There’s an absolute ocean of clever and gifted people out there but they often get ignored as there are other names and faces that are deemed more popular. Unfortunately viewing figures and ticket sales are placed about creating quality work and while I accept that many of those performers that are used time and time again are very good at what they do, a bit of variety really wouldn’t go amiss!
However, having said that, there are very industries that would pay you a month’s rent to mess around as a time-travelling police officer for the day and that’s why I’m still slogging away at it!

What is the worst casting you have ever seen?

There are so many to choose from! The reason I started tweeting about castings was because people were so shocked at just how insulting and offensive and downright baffling they often were. Ones such as ‘No pay unfortunately but you will get to ride in a white stretch limo with a midget and the band’ and ‘She looks a bit like a trollop but tries to dress a bit classy’ have been incredible finds. However, I think the worst has to be one that I saw recently asking for actors to play characters in a sweatshop and the company (a very well-known TV channel) were only offering expenses. I thought I was past being shocked by castings but this one was offensive on so many levels that I genuinely had to keep re-reading it just to make sure that I was seeing it properly. Sadly I was.

What was the catalyst behind you starting your blog?

As I said, it was because I felt like I couldn’t relate to the other acting blogs out there and I felt that there needed to be a voice that represented normal working actors who often find themselves out of work. However, although I knew that it was something I wanted to do, it took me a while to actually get it started. It only happened when I was coming back on the train after a month performing at the Edinburgh Festival. I’d stupidly forgotten to bring a book and my boyfriend and I were unable to sit together so to keep myself occupied, I just started writing. After nearly 4 hours of solid writing, I realised I had a lot to say on the subject of acting and after a bit of encouragement from my boyfriend who’s also a blogger, the blog was born.

What can be done to improve the kind of roles women get?

It has to start with the writing. There is not a day goes by that I don’t see at least one casting where a woman isn’t required to either be a stripper or a prostitute and although I often make a joke of it on Twitter, it is very worrying too. There is such great writing out there for men but female roles are so often overlooked. So many times I read castings where all the male characters are given weird and wonderful characteristics while the women are just written to look nice. There are some incredible writers out there who are really trying to make sure that there are strong, interesting roles for women but they need support from the major producers for their work to get made and seen. I do think that it’s changing and television and film is starting to listen but it feels like a very slow process that needs to speed up a little!

What is your favourite, and least favourite, thing about the industry?

Let’s start with my least favourite and get the negative stuff out the way. It has to be the lack of good, paid work out there for actors. So many companies expect actors to work for free and although I completely understand how difficult it must be working on a tight budget, it’s tough when you’re faced with it day after day. Acting is something that I stupidly want to do for the rest of my life but it’s hard when people seem to think that by offering you a limp cheese sandwich and £5 to cover your travel expenses, they’re doing you a favour. I’ve done jobs in the past where I’ve essentially been paying to be part of them and that’s when you know that something has gone wrong.

And my favourite thing about the industry? It’s that you just don’t know what’s coming up next. A few months ago I was whinging on Twitter about how there didn’t seem to be any work out there and literally minutes later, my agent was on the phone with an audition for an incredible part in a feature film. I didn’t get the role but I do love how your luck changes from one minute to the next. Although it can be pretty unnerving at times, especially when you’re going through a particularly quiet spell, it’s incredibly exhilarating too. I think it’s a little bit addictive which is why actors put themselves through such torment.

You blog and tweet under a pseudonym, do you believe it would harm your acting career if you didn’t? Can you be critical?

The decision to write under a pseudonym was made so that I could be openly critical about the industry. As an actor you have to be so careful because you never know who you’re going to be working with next and I think that means a lot of actors are worried about speaking out about how infuriating this industry can be. Writing anonymously gives me the freedom to be brutally honest about the problems I face without jeopardising my acting career. Although there are days when I wish I could just tweet under my real name, I’m sure I’d have been in a fair bit of trouble for some of my comments, especially about casting calls and auditions.

What was your favourite ever job?

Despite going on about getting paid, my favourite job was one when I didn’t receive a penny. It was one of the first jobs I did after graduating from drama school and was a devised piece. It was pretty shambolic most of the time and we didn’t even get expenses but it was incredible experience seeing a project from the first meeting where we had some terrible ideas to the final night of performance. We barely sold any tickets (mainly because it was listed incorrectly meaning that most audience members turned up about 5 minutes before it was about to end) but it was great fun and real learning curve for me as a new actor.

and your least?

A summer-long Shakespeare festival. It was fun for about a fortnight but after three months away from home on only £25 a week, I was a state. The plays were performed outdoors and it was a particularly bad summer which meant that we spent a lot of time performing in soaking wet velvet dresses. British audiences are incredibly resilient and would determinedly sit there huddled up in anoraks and shelter under umbrellas while we battled with wind, rain, thunder and lightning. Because I was earning so little money, I was mainly living off value bran flakes and tomato soup so I ended the three months malnourished, exhausted, utterly sick of the sight and sound of Shakespeare and with about £4 in my bank account. That was something they really didn’t warn me about in drama school!

You can read the Professionally Resting Blog here and follow her on Twitter.

Is China Buying The World? | Book Review

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This short book is more than food for the brain, it is fascinating, a snapshot of history. Touching on a popular subject and often asked question by the global media; Is china buying the world?

Peter Nolan’s well researched short book is full of facts and weighty political and financial debate. Nolan certainly knows his stuff, as well he should; he is Professor of Chinese Development at the University of Cambridge and is one of the leading international experts on China and the global economy.

Did you know?: China accounts for 26 percent of the total foreign holding of US debt. However Britain and Japan hold more US public debt than China. China only holds 12 per cent of total US public debt.

Everyone in business should read this book. It also has lots of fun, fascinating graphs and tables. This book gives a stunning insight into business in China, the UK, US and beyond.

Another point I got from the book is a certain racism against China. I know China has a dodgy history of human rights, but it would seem that the western world is finding it hard for anyone else to take over it’s dominance: perceived or otherwise. A point that Nolan point out is not good for peace or international relations. The book also touches on another subject “Who are We?” and are there any business which are British, or American left?

China is the world’s second biggest economy and its largest exporter. It possesses the world’s largest foreign exchange reserves and has 29 firms in the FT 500 list of the world’s largest companies. ‘China’s Rise’ preoccupies the global media, which carry regular articles suggesting that it is using its financial resources to ‘buy the world’.

Is there any truth to this idea? Or is this just scaremongering by Western commentators who have little interest in a balanced presentation of China’s role in the global political economy?

This book is a must-read. A lot of people are worrying about the ‘awakening giant’ of China, let Peter Nolan allay your fears.

You can buy Is China Buying the World? here.

Adele Parks Whatever it Takes | Book Review

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I got through Adele Parks new book Whatever it Takes as quickly as my schedule allowed. It is a wonderfully paced book, full of flawed characters and brilliant observations. Some of the characters are not likable, and become less so further on, I like that. The book captivates.

As a Londoner the story of Elosie Hamilton, who moves to Dartmouth for her husband after living her whole life in London is interesting to me, and the book even made me long for the seaside and a large country house. Well, for a while anyway.

Whatever it Takes is a story of family, friendship and marriage. It is also a story of fertility. Sara is almost driven mad for her longing for a child. She becomes bitter and difficult to be around. While Sara is childless, Eloise has three children. Eloise is nice, far too nice. She tries to be perfect and have a perfect life as one thing after another nearly makes her world, and her families implode.

Spoiler Alert

Another thing about the book is that I also found it painful to read. The reason being is how well Parks writes about the character, Margaret descending into dementia. My grandfather had Alzheimer’s and the the book is so well written that I knew this was happening to the character before it was revealed. I recognised my own grandfather in the character of Margaret, all of the little things she does and that happen to her; painful to read but it does not make the book less enjoyable to read.

The characters sometimes make you want to shake them or slap them, love them or hug them. This book is a triumph for Adele Parks. She should be very proud.

You can buy Whatever It Takes here

Victoria Fox on Temptation Island | Frost Interviews

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Frost magazine has interview author Victoria Fox on her bonk-busting book “Temptation Island”. It is a very fun read and the review is here.

How did you become a writer?

Writing novels was always the dream but one I’d decided not to pursue until later. After university I got a job in publishing, joining as editorial assistant on a women’s fiction list and four years later working as an editor: this taught me a great deal about the business of how books are produced as well as an insight into the market. I realised I was waiting to find a truly exciting, shocking, racy bonkbuster like the ones I’d enjoyed as a teen, a proper brick of a book packed with sex and scandal, but none were quite hitting it for me, so I decided to have a go myself. ‘Write what you know’ is a great piece of advice for aspiring authors – as soon as I sat down to my debut Hollywood Sinners it just sort of all fell out. Curious as to whether I was on to something, I submitted a partial manuscript (about 30,000 words) anonymously to a literary agent
and happily she agreed to represent me. Shortly after I resigned from my job to complete the novel and three months later we had a deal.

Could you ever be anything else?

As a child I saw myself as one of three things: a vet, a gymnast or a writer. The first was out because I’m terrible at science (once I got 4% in a GCSE Chemistry test) and the second because I can’t do gymnastics. The last was the one that never went away. I’d be happy working as lots of things but don’t think I’d ever be cured of the writing bug. Certainly I’d be doing it as a hobby if I weren’t lucky enough to be making a living from it.




Did you base the characters on any real people?

Both Hollywood Sinners and Temptation Island feature sensational celebrity scandals, so I’d be in hot water if I said the characters were based on anyone in real life. Instead they’re inspired by what I see and read about in the papers and online, and often will be a mix of several intrigues that capture my attention. One of the great things about bonkbusters is that their characters can be truly outrageous, so I like to go all out with my players and make them as exciting and memorable as possible. If readers think they identify a real person then that’s great – I used to love trying to spot who was who in Jackie Collins’ novels: it’s part of the fun.

How do you come up with ideas for your books?




I’m afraid I read rather too many celebrity magazines. It’s a guilty pleasure. I love to see who’s dating whom, what so-and-so wore at whatever premiere, where the rich and famous have taken their super-yachts this summer . . . all that kind of stuff. Hollywood Sinners came from an idea I had about an A-list movie couple – it was a germ of a notion but enough to spin a story, and then I had all these power couples coming out of the woodwork with their individual stories and a novel was born. Temptation Island takes that scandal one step further, I suppose. This time I’ve focused on a very controversial theme, and am interested to know what people think!


What is your writing ritual like?

I have to be disciplined and stick to a routine. I’ll get up early because I’m most productive in the mornings, and work through till lunch when I’ll try to go to the gym (if I don’t do this I get really bad mid-afternoon brain slump). The rest of the day is sporadic; I’ll get distracted by emails and Facebook, but will usually produce a thousand more words before my boyfriend gets in from work. For me it’s important to try and keep to ‘normal’ work hours, so nine to five, Monday to Friday. I don’t want to be out of sync with my friends and try to keep my weekends free. However the lovely thing about working for yourself is that if it doesn’t pan out that way, and the creative tap isn’t one you can always turn on, you can make up the word count another time. It’s also wise to sustain a separate office area so you can close the door on work at the end of the day.



Do you think the recession makes people turn to novels like Temptation Island, and that need for escapism?

Bonkbusters should always provide escapism. They’re gateways into glittering worlds that we’d typically never be able to touch, arenas where everything goes and anything can happen. It stands to reason that during a recession readers reach for this kind of entertainment, but having said that in recent years it’s been crime novels – which offer a grimmer view of life – that have proved wildly popular. Perhaps the recent success of E L James’ Fifty Shades trilogy marks a turning of the tide, and a sign that the women’s market is switching to sex and fantasy for the same fix. I hope so, because bonkbusters have all the great things about erotic fiction and heaps more on top: the glam locations, the juicy storylines and the utterly transporting experience. Recession or not, I think they provide the perfect respite.


If you could go to an island like the characters, what would you take with you?

If I ended up on the one in the book, I’d take a cutthroat hack (or be one myself) so I could blow wide open the biggest Hollywood scandal in the history of the world! On a regular island, like if I were Tom Hanks in Castaway (!), I’d take a box of matches, an encyclopaedia and a pen and paper. That sounds boring, doesn’t it? Hmm. How much can I take? A fridge of chilled champagne would be good, and so would a hot guy who I’d set to work building me a raft without his clothes on.


How long did the book take to write?

Temptation Island took me four months to write and two to edit. If I’m strict about sitting down and writing every day I can normally produce around 15,000 words a week. The key is to keep pressing on and not to get sucked into re-reading what you’ve done – it’ll get changed on a later draft anyway. Once you’ve completed the book, even if you think it’s bad, you have something entire to work with and show other people. That’s when the editing process can begin and you start guiding the manuscript towards the best it can possibly be.

Do you think the bonkbuster is back?

It’s coming (ahem). The glory days were in the eighties and nineties – every girl remembers flicking through Jackie and Jilly at school and giggling over the naughty bits – but since then the genre seems to have gone off the boil. My mission is to bring it back! The vintage classics were magnificent, and today I think it’s about borrowing what was so great about those and combining it with a modern twist. Our present-day obsession with celebrity lends itself perfectly: bonkbusters should have sizzling secrets at their core so it’s all about peeling back the headlines and seeing what lies beneath. Recently I heard they’re remaking Dallas, which flags a return to these amazing multi-character sagas, and Shirley Conran’s superb bonkbuster, the definitive and fabulous Lace, is making a comeback this summer. It feels as if people are ready to embrace the genre again, and for me that isn’t a moment too soon.


What do you think of celebrities now? 



We’re obsessed, and that says more about us than it does them. On the one hand, we worship celebrities. Money and fame are seen as the quick passage to happiness, and anyone who’s achieved that gets a golden ticket to a higher plain – it’s a religion, and a fact of human nature to want what someone else has got. On the other, it’s about bringing these icons down, which is a miserable admission but true. We want to celebrate one day and criticise the next. Who’s had a breakdown? Who’s going through a divorce? Who’s had all that cosmetic surgery but still can’t get a man? Perhaps we like to gossip because it distracts us from our lives; perhaps it makes us feel better about ourselves. I’m all for celebrity when it’s earned, yet these days it’s the reality TV thing that spawns a host of wannabes who seem to be confused about what they want and can’t handle fame when it comes. Riches can reward anyone, but recognition for having achieved something is what we should be striving for.


Who is your favourite, and least favourite, celebrity?

Men I have a crush on are: Leonardo DiCaprio (he haunted my teenage years: that Romeo & Juliet pool scene), James Franco, Ryan Gosling, Chris Hemsworth and I’ve got a thing for Rafa Nadal. I’m also fascinated by untouchable megastars like Tom Cruise. Jack Nicholson is the boss; Robert De Niro close second. Actresses I love are Emma Stone, Amanda Seyfried, and Meryl Streep has bags of class. Also Chloë Sevigny is awesome. I guess my least favourite celeb would be any footballer who can’t keep it in his pants, and rides on the fact he earns an obscene amount of money yet still hasn’t learned to treat women properly.

What’s next for you?

I’m hard at work on my third novel, which is a glamorous, sexy revenge thriller set in the music industry. Watch this space!

You can buy Temptation Island here

The Titan Prophecy. The New Harry Potter? {Book Reviews}

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The Titan Prophecy: Rise of the Dark One is a blockbuster fantasy novel aimed at young adults, steeped in Greek Mythology and tales of Greek gods and dragons. I am not a young adult but I still loved it. It is Harry Potter meets Lord of the Rings. The book educates and entertains as it uses real Greek mythology and stories, it then entwined them with the story of Charlie, his sister Emily, and his friend Max. Two boys and a girl, sound familiar?

This is not just some Harry Potter rip-off. It is dazzling and original. It is hard to put down and actually a little bit scary. Not sure if I am supposed to admit that…The book includes current world issues like climate change into the fabric of the novel. It also has some killer lines like: ‘Thinking? Surely you can do better than that?”

It has a familiarity for anyone who is a fan of history due to the real mythical historical figures in it. It is a blockbusting action-adventure-fantasy-time-travelling- novel. A real triumph for A.M Crawford, a former political journalist. This book is the first in a series and I will be reading the other ones, even if I am not 11 and outside of the demographic.

This book received the ultimate stamp of approval from me; I got some of my friends to buy it so they could read it too.

A.M Crawford commented: I have tried to weave a tale that will engage the imagination of boys and girls from the age of 11 onwards so they will grow older with Charlie, Max and their friends and remain engaged throughout their teens. The combination of elements of Greek mythology with an adventure story set in a quintessential English village is a magical mix.”

Buy it here: The Titan Prophecy: Rise Of The Dark One

http://www.facebook.com/thetitanprophecy

Blake New YA ebook by Sarahjane Funnell

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Children’s Author Sarahjane Funnell has published her
first YA fantasy story entitled Blake, launching as an
ebook with Amazon and myebook.com on Monday 10th
October 2011, published by Gibson Publishing.

Blake, downloadable for £2.99, is the latest literary addition
to her published repertoire, which includes the short story
Princess Rose and the Royal Tea Castle published within
the middle grade Children’s Anthology A Pocketful of Moondust.
Blake is an aloof and mysterious guy. He possesses a sharp glint in his eye and
harbours a hidden secret. Ebony, a schoolgirl, becomes completely mesmerised
by him and his strange character. Longing to unveil just what it is that makes
Blake so different, Ebony desperately searches for him to find the answer. When
Ebony finally has an opportune moment to discover the secret that surrounds
Blake, she learns that it is not only he who hides an unknown identity but that she
too has an inner secret that stretches far beyond her own existence. An unknown
secret that changes not only her thoughts and the ways of the world but also her
physical human form.

Blake is a captivating short story that will spark the imagination of Young Adult
readers, taking them on an emotive journey of self-discovery within two
contrasting worlds. Featuring rich language and powerful emotion, Blake is
perfect for readers looking for an introduction to fantasy fiction or shorter reading.

Frost Book Reviews: Cathy Glass, The Night The Angels Came

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Cathy Glass has written eleven books, this is the first one I have read. She has been a foster carer for over 20 years and this book is based on a true story. It tells the story of a boy called Michael who’s widower father is terminally ill, and whose mother died when he was younger. Cathy has two young children of her own and is going through a divorce, can she put her family though even more heartache?

The book is well written in a factual way. The subject matter is heavy, but it is still a book with moments of lightness and happiness. The young boy that Cathy fosters is only eight and about to lose his last remaining parent, Michael comes from a catholic family and believes that when the time comes, angels will come and take his father away to be with his mother in heaven.

The Night The Angels Came is a heart-warming book, with real life observations that make you nod in agreement. The fact that it is a real life story makes it even more sad. Cathy Glass is a good writer, with years of experience on the subject that she writes. This book is definitely worth a read.

The Night the Angels Came is out now and is published by HarperCollins.