Interesting and promising premise turned bland.
584948
First of all why 4 stars then?  Because I like Sci-Fi and while having a History degree I found the Egyptology interesting.
Now then, a comment about the guy who doesn't like Letterboxing.  Umm, dude!  DVDs are made for Widescreen presentations!  The letterboxing MAINTAINS the theatrical presentation.  Unless your local theater has a 4:3 screen then you're missing at least a third of the picture by LOVING Pan'n'Scan.  I hate to see what you're going to do when HDTVs are the norm in their 16:9 format.  If anything I HATE watching movies in Pan'n'Scan because I KNOW that there is more picture there that I'm not seeing.  I've been watching VHS widescreen versions for years now on a 27" and have no problem "tuning-out" the black bars.  I have just bought a DVD player and a 32" Sony WEGA Trinitron and Widescreen hasn't looked better.  One step down from HD.
But now back to the film itself.  Stargate is about a circular gate that is a portal from one point in space to another through a wormhole.  The portal in this film is one to a planet that apparently has simularities to Earth's Ancient Egypt.  Except the Gods are aliens that have adopted ancient Egyption dieties for appearances.  We have the pharoah-looking Sun God Rah, the jackal-looking Anubis, and the eagle-looking Horus.  They also have cool looking skypods armed with the same energy weapon that the ground troops carry.
The film could have been better had the locale and culture of the people there on the alien planet been a little more dynamic.  But at least it spawned a highly successful TV series where these alien worlds and story lines could be fleshed out more.
4347154
it's OK, two-and-a-half stars.  It went from mysterious to silly pretty quick.  The premise and build up showed promise but once the "mystery" was solved, the last third of the book broke down, becoming cartoonish and frantic.
4957060
It was a good concept that had potential but was ultimately let down by a trite execution and a shallow exploration of the characters.
1092353
I liked "Memory Man" and I'll continue with the series, but, this one, whereas, the premise was intriguing to start, devolved into a stereotypical , all too predictable, southern racist bad guys story.
4121858
This YA Fantasy has a very promising beginning - it is a sort of blend of dystopian fiction and high fantasy, and like all the best high fantasy, the book opens with a map. From its prologue, the book is both engaging and intriguing - and not just because I am a sucker for books about twins!

Unfortunately, its initial promise quickly falls flat. The timeline for this wintry dystopia is not even 250 years from the "Healing" of modern society - a pretty short span of years for how little remains and how twisted the views are of the citizens of the Aerie. They weave stories to remember the wickedness of before - the worship of the false gods Apple, MasterCard, Tylenol, etc. - in their efforts to uphold the new moral standards imposed by their leaders in this New North. The book reads a bit like a fun archaeology assignment - imagine modern life as the subject of a dig and try to re-create what will be told about society. And if perhaps if Terrell had stuck to that, the book would have felt a bit more fun. Instead, the author muddles this with a weak romance, unbelievable actions taken by her "barely trained" heroine and a pointless and quite blatant rip-off of a&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/The-Hunger-Games-Book-1/dp/0439023521/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">The Hunger Games (Book 1)</a>-like competition.

The ending hints of a more interesting plot for future books, but I am not quite sure I will continue on with the series. Its mimicry of Suzanne Collins' books are pretty blatant and Terrell wavers in her undertones on the "evil" of current society. The "Boundary People" (Inuits) are an interesting facet of the book, but unfortunately the book does not spend enough time on them to redeem it. And as for the endorsement that compares this to George R. R. Martin's&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/George-R-R-Martin-s-A-Game-of-Thrones-5-Book-Boxed-Set-Song-of-Ice-and-Fire-series-A-Game-of-Thrones-A-Clash-of-Kings-A-Storm-of-Swords-A-Feast-for-Crows-and-A-Dance-with-Dragons/dp/0345535529/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones 5-Book Boxed Set (Song of Ice and Fire series): A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast for Crows, and A Dance with Dragons</a>&nbsp;series, well, the only similarity I see is that there is a lot of snow... Maybe the younger (or less widely read) en of the market will be more impressed with this premise and consider it to be more original. It is fairly fast-paced and there is a nice multi-media aspect with a few drawings and some journal entries.
4049315
The concepts are interesting, but the author spent little time on conveying a sense of the characters or the world in which they live.  The overall impression is wooden and rushed.
1277715
The premise of the book started off very well.  Daughter of a noble family, under strict rules and protocols for women sneaks out to explore Venice on her own. Exciting. Problem was that it wasn't very exciting at all. A couple of mishaps, she lands at a Jewish copyists and eventually falls in love with him while pretending to be a boy.  The plot sort of plods along for awhile and I agree with other reviews where the ending just sort of falls apart.  It winds up quickly and seems to end just for lack of nothing really else to do with this character. She resigns herself to a life she didn't want. Although she says she doesn't want to marry or have children, yet she did fall in love. But then decides, no she won't marry after all.  Disappointing book overall. I have been to Venice and am fascinated by its history. I saw this in a used bookstore and picked it up for $1.00.
2504386
I found this story to be a story that went no where, and its plot and characters were unengaging.  First of all, the basic premise of the story was implausible; that gave it a bad start.  (although how is something called speculative fiction judged implausible?)  None the less, the idea of a benificial, but virtually omipotentent power existing in a universe where exporation is still necessary, is contradictory.  For an interesting take on the 'ultimate' society read Stanislaw Lem's 'The Cyberaid'.  The basic premise of the explorer corp, on the other hand, is not only believable, but has countless parrallels in current society (think of the migrant workers that we ignore in the name of cheap produce).  Society has always found some group to marginalize for its own benifit and there is no reason to think that this will change.  The other interesting point of the book is his take on the transparent humans; the idea that being nearly indestructable will lead to stagnant emotional and intellectual development is quite inspired.  It is too bad that a book with two basically interesting ideas could end up being a boring read.  Ultimately the story line and characters did not catch my interest, and he did not seem to take his foundational premises anywhere.  It was a chore to finish.  I gave two stars because of the interesting ideas, and because the writing is clear and easy to follow.
524986
This movie had an interesting premise and start, however it fell flat as it moved into completely predictable territory. I wanted to like this movie, however was left immensely disappointed. I'm giving it 2 stars for the good start.
2372097
The premise seems wonderful; giant meat-planets, space opera, weird-fic craziness with recycling beasts, spray-on spacesuits, and women birthing monstrosities and machine parts while their own lives are repeated over and over as the planet re-births them.

That's why it was so disappointing when halfway through the book, it turns into a meat-themed sword-and-sorcery story, with a treatise about abusive relationships in alternating chapters. From an epic where characters are to decide the fate of the world, the dual protagonists are put into two very different stories. One making her way up, reverse-Inferno style, through successive layers of the world, the other struggling with whether she loves her abusive wife, a wife who recently attempted to genocide the protagonist's people and eat their world. Neither character is likeable or compelling enough to really make the reader care much about what happens to them, Inferno-wariorress has plot-convenient amnesia that allows for her to have met half the characters in the book before and given them oh-so-cryptic hints about what her real plan is, and Abused Wife is a self-professed liar and schemer, who has a Secret Plan that doesn't seem to have been well thought-out, as she fails to plan for her abuser being almost a carbon copy of her abusive mother and literally hamstringing her.

There's some of the much-talked-about gore, but if you're a Weird Fiction or Body Horror afficionado, there's not a lot here that will even register on the meter. Not much body-horror related affects the protagonists (they have parts cut out on the regular and seem to do okay), and it feels like the author remembered that meatpunk was a thing every five pages or so, and threw something in to make sure it continued.

Then there's some of the odd choices for the sake of sending a message that don't really mesh well with the story. Everyone's a woman. Why? Dunno, cuz. Half of them act like a misandrist's idea of the Strong Male stereotype, but they're all women because. This could have been an interesting story point, but it doesn't seem to have been done for any plot-relevant reason. There's also a subtext of Civil Rights with Mutants (odd in a place that has meat trees, bug lamps, and giant human-monsters) and The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas but hamfisted (Mutants must work the fields to provide for the Golden Ones), again, these could have been interesting points, but they feel out of place in a story about mountains made of bone where people are thrown, still living, into a recycling hole to be consumed by giant monsters.

I'm maybe 2/3 of the way through, and I can't sustain interest. I'm pretty sure I can see most of the big plot points coming, and I just don't care enough to see them through. I know this was delayed, but I think it's a case where delaying it a little longer and using that time to work on it would have been better than making sure it got out on deadline.
2508680
Starts off good then basically stalls and loses momentum. If the author had stayed with the premise of the heroine solving crimes with the help of dead people it might have been worth reading. Instead, it becomes an occult romance novel. Read about half. figured out it wasn't going anywhere interesting, quit, read something else.
3577895
I listened to the Unabridged Audio version of Timeline, and found it to be an okay read. While the initial premise was indeed fascinating, I became tired of the `super-powered' characters, which seemed unbelievable to me. IE: Super-smart, super-intelligent, and 'smarter than the experts' college students. (Anyone who attends a modern-day college , would know the chances of finding college students who a: get good grades and b: can outjoust and out fight medieval French knights are slim to none). Also, while the characters are supposed to be young people, they were written like 40+ adults. Come on now. Do a little more research.
Other stereotypes abound. You have the `friendly knowledgeable professor,' ("Sliders" anyone?), the damsel-in-distress-who-disguises-herself as a boy, (any number of bodice rippers have this plot, AND do it better), the evil-overbearing guardian (straight out of Robin Hood), Ho hum.
While the plot was nothing particularly new, Timeline entertained me for the duration. I just wish that new territory had been explored. Instead, you have a plot rehash of any number of historical novels, rolled into a single novel. Fun, but hardly innovative. Also, for some reason the Narrator decided to read Andre's voice with an Austrian accent, which made him sound like Arnold Schwarzenegger. Very distracting!
4836474
The idea sounded quite interesting. After the recent death of her father Katherine must recognize, he wrote very successful gothic novels under the pseudonym Mrs. Wilson. The family's income depended largely on the book fee. Now Katherine was secretly forced to end a half-finished book by herself. Her two sisters and aunt knew nothing about it. Unfortunately the way the story was told, was not captivating. It lacked of a golden thread and suspense.
Even at 60 percent, a third potential groom was introduced. Until then, everything sounded like a huge longwinded prelude without much meaning. After 80 percent the reader still didn't know, who has feelings for who. Overall there really were no feelings at all. There was no romance, maybe it is a book of adventure stories or a childrens book? I think it was rather bland.
3263091
It started off with so much promise. The premise is original and intriguing and the voice of the young narrator likable. The author drops so many ominous clues about what the slowing could be. Why it's happening. Is it the government? Our destruction of the environment? Or some other force we would discover as the we turned further into the pages. Unfortunately, nothing was discovered and we got no resolve. I was left completely unsatisfied. The author copped out on the ending. Not committing to anything. Just leaving us with the same questions we started with. I was really disappointed.
1516173
This book began with good promise of a nice, juicy manor house mystery.  Then it just sort of petered out as if the author ran out of ideas in fleshing out the plot.  Lady Georgiana, the main character, was invited to spend time at a lovely manor house teaching the newly discovered heir to the manor the ins and outs of etiquette and behavior expected of a Duke.  She spends barely any time with Jack, the future Duke. She soon discovers the murdered body of the current-and-now-ex-Duke and spends the rest of the story gathering clues and passing them off to the police inspector in charge of the investigation.  The supporting characters who usually appear in the Royal Spyness Mysteries make their short and uneventful appearances, as if they were an after thought.  And the ending really didn't seem to suit the plot at all.  Even with these detractions, I would have found this a good, fluffy mystery if the relationship between Jack and Georgiana had included more substance and a bit of light hearted comedy.  Perhaps even a bit of rivalry for Georgiana's affections between Jack and her current beau, Darcy. Unexplained results of a sance are just left behind as if they were never mentioned. Even the discovery of a secret passage goes by the wayside. As it is, this installment to the series seemed to me to be an interesting beginning to a knitting project left unraveled and unfinished.

Ah, well....In the dedication, the author mentions falling and breaking her hip.  Perhaps Ms Bowen was just not feeling well.  I will look for the next installment and am really hoping for a return to the pleasant twists and turns of a well plotted and fleshed out mystery with the gentle humor and intelligence I have come to expect from a Rhys Bowen mystery.
4677346
It was okay.  It began with an interesting opening but later became very predictable.
587318
'The Secret Scroll's' premise has potential, and its setting is fascinating, but unfortunately that's where the good stuff ends.

First, many of the events in this novel feel... capricious. Convenient. Whenever the main character, Josh, needs to figure something out, he gets a hunch, meditates, has a vision or dream, or realizes something by instinct. There's no tension in that, no question that the story might end in any sort of surprising manner.

Josh isn't a very likable character. I realize that part of the author's agenda is wanting us to see him as flawed and human. However, the author is very heavy-handed in terms of Josh's moral judgments of others. Josh debates and prods at others' beliefs in ways that bely his own dislike of judgmentalism and turn him into an annoying hypocrite.

Danielle, Josh's love interest... oh, you don't want to get me started on this one. She spends virtually the entire book being viewed as a sex object, being used as a sex object, and using her sexuality as her ostensible only weapon (and a poor one at that). She's supposedly an intelligent archaeologist, yet she's entirely shut out of that side of the plot and raises only a token protest. She's referred to repeatedly as being brilliant, resilient, remarkable, etc., yet she spends almost the entire book simpering, coming onto Josh in front of everyone, etc.

As for the bad guys, they're obvious, stupid beyond belief, stereotypically eeeeevil, and one-dimensionally maniacal; they act like excitable children rather than fanatical adults. They've supposedly remained a secret sect for nearly 2,000 years. Yet they have a proselytizing web page, they put out pamphlet propaganda, and they carve their 'secret' sign into blatant ritualistic killings. A five-year-old could keep a secret better than these guys. They'd be at home in a Scooby-Doo cartoon, complete with mask-removing reveal.

The premise and setting had a lot of potential, but unfortunately everything else is one-dimensional, predictable, heavy-handed, and stilted. This is clearly meant to be the first book in a series, and as a story it would be an interesting one to follow, but the writing itself is too painful for me to want to continue with it.