Kat's Got Your Culture

I found this movie pretty satisfying. The pacing and tension work, and the characters were surprisingly developed, maybe because it's based on a book. I liked how most people unwittingly serving the evil spirit (fake Virgin Mary) are actually well-intentioned and thought they were doing good. One weak point is definitely the bad effects. Not like, oh it's older and looks bad to us now, but like, they should've just shown less. Especially of evil Mary, who's a pretty original villain but is unfortunately shown with some of those clichés like long pointy fingers and bonecracking crawling movements that have nothing to do with her backstory. Still, it was fun and I could overlook those small parts since they didn't have too much screentime.

Another really hyped horror movie I was excited to watch! This one is bizarre, as expected. I wasn't quite as taken with it as I hoped because the tension sort of levels out early on rather than arcing, but I did love the visuals. Everything has a surreal/dreamlike quality, and I also found myself reminded of creepy AI fails. WARNING to other people who have motion sickness – this movie does include some found-footage-style shaky camerawork, although luckily it's not most of the movie. (I always find that kind of horror sort of sus, like who'd keep holding the camera the whole time under those circumstances?) Anyway, I was glad I watched it. It's not scary but it is interesting, and the sort of movie that reminds you of a lot of things (I can't say too much or it would be a spoiler)

I've been really diving into Sherlock Holmes lately (same kind of relaxation as Agatha Christie). Compared to Dame Agatha, some of his mysteries have little to no opportunity for you to guess the solution yourself, which can feel like Sir ACD was cheating. The novels especially have huge stretches of backstory you couldn't know about, and the murderer is someone you've never heard of. That being said, there's something charming and cozy about most of them. I particularly enjoy the shorter stories that are more in the style of Poe's "Murder in the Rue Morgue," where you start out with a seemingly inexplicable situation and then gradually arrive at the solution. We'll see whether I'm tired of Sherlock by the end of Volume 1 or want to continue.

Who knew a trip to the underworld could be so much fun? Not for the characters, but for me reading this. I enjoyed Katabasis so much. I don't read much fantasy so I only bought this because Yellowface is so fantastic I wanted to read something else by R. F. Kuang. The worldbuilding in this alternative history where magick is an academic discipline like other sciences and Dante, Orpheus, etc. provide actual literal reports about journeys to hell is great in this it just works seamlessly in the background so you focus on the complex characters and their struggles (mentally, magically, with each other and trying to survive hell). The metaphysics of hell are surprising and make this feel more like a thrilling adventure narrative than you might think when you first hear "book about burned-out grad student going to hell." Have to read more of her books! Oh and because I keep mentioning this lately, I think the word count is like 160k, and I wouldn't want it any shorter.

I don't usually watch much body horror, but the premise of this one looked clever and original. The setup is good with realistic insecurities within the relationship and partners growing apart. The acting is very good, and the body horror aspects work well because they focus more on the situational horror of it rather than grossout gore. The horror backstory could've been a little more developed, but overall this was fresh and entertaining. Not as good as Obsession, but solid relationship horror in its own right.

Reading this after seeing the 90s movie is kind of like reading Go Set a Watchman after reading To Kill a Mockingbird. You thought the musketeers were doing heroic deeds all the time? Actually, they're constantly drinking and getting into pointless fatal streetfighting over extremely minor perceived slights, and trying to seduce married women to get them to pay their gambling debts. I was also surprised that the cardinal isn't even the main villain. But anyway it's a fun adventure/coming-of-age story that's playful and silly most of the way and then gets surprisingly dark. Because I think it's a shame the industry is so discouraging to longer novels atm, I also want to point out that this one is over 160k words and it needs that space. Interested to read more Dumas now.

One of the most relaxing things to do in Wroclaw is take a ride on the river Oder. There are several harbors where you can board, and I love anything you can arrive at spontaneously without booking ahead. I got on a Tourist Harbor. Despite the name, it wasn't crowded at all (on a weekday). The boats are dog-friendly in case anyone's wondering (Wroclaw is pretty dog-friendly overall). The ride I took was about 45 minutes and a nice combination of the old town seen from the water and more natural parts of the riverbank. Especially pleasant if you need to cool off on a hot day or sit for a bit after walking around looking at things.

Kawiarna Filmowa is fairly small but has a little movie theater in the basement and lots of quirky old furniture. Czarnia Magia is one of the nicest cafes in the center. It has a whimsical courtyard where you can get out of the rush and sit reading with your coffee.

So many good ones! Shakshuka is a good laidback brunch spot. I liked the quiet, airy feel and how a lot of people were there eating by themselves with a book. Grain is a cozy corner spot with nice couches and comfortable chairs. Naleśniki Babci has great international-themed crepes and pierogis (even if it's sometimes hard to understand what the crepe has to do with that country). Nothing special about the coffee so only go for the food and nice little patio. ARTCAF has a good brunch menu, good indoor and outdoor seating and an artsy vibe as the name suggests, including several exhibits. El Gato is one of the more central ones on this list. Good iced lattes. I appreciated Gniazdo's peaceful interior courtyard. ParaLab was a bit out of the way but maybe the best iced latte. They also have brunch. Smallish, quiet and relaxed.

Wow, this movie is fantastic! The tension and dramatic irony the whole time as you know how it will go bad and the protagonist keeps trying to tell himself he can make it work. I have a thing about doppelgangers et al so I found Inde Navarrette's performance incredibly creepy (also just incredible like all the actors in this). It does a great job taking the feel of an unhealthy relationship and then slipping into horror before you notice. I found that it also draws on the horror of becoming unrecognizable to yourself in a relationship where you feel insecure and how an obsessive relationship is more about the obsessee than the object of their obsession, although the literal plot is different of course. From the feel of the movie, I think fans of Talk to Me or Weapons would like it. As we know from Truth or Dare or the Smile movies, a creepy smile can go along way and wow Navarrette's smiles are creepy. There's a little gore that I found cheap when the actual social-interact...

Not to say I didn't enjoy the first Evil Dead with all it's oatmeal-based special effects, but 2 is way better. I was confused at first because ED2 sort of rewrites history like Ash has never been to the cabin before, but then it made sense (as much sense as it was going to make). This is definitely in the category of Comfort Horror – not at all scary and I didn't expect it to be (as opposed to disappointing horror movies I go into expecting and wanting them to be scary). The screenplay is weaker than the rest, like how they cram Ash's whole tragic love story into the first 5 seconds, but there are great camerawork, in part innovative even for today, and visuals (the physical form of the the Kandarian demon is 100%). Although most of the funny parts may be unintentional, the part with A Farewell to Arms made me laugh aloud for 10 minutes (you'll know it when you see it!). Just a lot of fun and many iconic scenes. I still have to watch the rest of this francise.

It was really hot out when I went here, and this café felt like a cool, quiet refuge from the loud street outside. Black Point is spacious with lots of comfortable seating, including a good peoplewatching window. They had good iced lattes and serve breakfast all day. Also, since so many places in Berlin are so stingy with tapwater, I always appreciate cafés like this that offer you an unlimited supply. It's the kind of café where you could sit a long time with a book and not feel crowded out.

I spent some time in Wrocław, Poland lately, so drifting away from Berlin posts for a few! By the way, I spell it like vrote-swaff in my head to help with pronunciation. It's a lovely city, a little sprawling in some parts so best either for a weekend if you only want to see the very center with the old town, or for a couple weeks if you want to explore different neighborhoods. Overall, it had lots of great cafes, so you can imagine what I spent most of the time doing (recommendations to follow!). It also has very affordable public transit and is on a beautiful stretch of the Oder with boat rides aplenty. In a nonrepresentative survey of having asked random people on the street things, most people speak English. There are more and better iced lattes on average (as compared to many parts of Berlin) and drivers are really good at stopping at crosswalks and not doing a rolling stop or worse towards pedestrians. Since it's been pretty hot lately, I also noticed a little more air-co...

Ivallan's in Kreuzberg is one of the best and most interesting English bookstores in Berlin. I'm not just saying that because I had my last book launch there and they carry my books, although of course it's a bonus! (Another bonus is that it's around the corner from Pia, so you can get an iced latte afterwards). Even though it's small, they have a good selection of new and used books. The books are sorted into creative/obscure thematic categories and on random surfaces in shelves, drawers, suitcases, etc. so it's a fun place to browse, and you always stumble upon something unexpected.

Café Pia is a nice little refuge on busy Kottbusser Damm. The seats outside are great for peoplewatching. It looks too small for much indoor seating, but actually there's a cozy nook with benches and cushions. They also have great iced lattes (and other drinks and a million kinds of pastries, etc. but iced lattes are more important). Definitely a good place to grab something if you're running errands on Ko'Damm or strolling through Graefekiez.

Among my main criteria for cafes in summer is whether they have iced lattes, so this one passed that test (although they strangely call them iced cappuccinos, but whatever). They also avoided one of my biggest pet peeves among German cafes that don't really know what iced drinks are: putting hot foam on iced lattes. Otherwise, it's located right along the Landwehr Canal near Ko'Damm (the part where the Tuesday/Friday market is), has outdoor seating and also an open, airy interior, which is nice since it's been such a hot summer. Apparently they also have brunch, but I didn't try it yet. Always nice to visit cafes when they're new and not overcrowded!

Get excited for Going to Summertime , coming out October 27! As an added bonus, this KGYC Guest Book is from Meerkat Press , which published two of my novels so you know it's worth checking out. Every suburban street holds secrets and ghosts, but Summerland Place holds more than most. The team from The Red Mullet Hair Salon head to Summerland Place to explore the abandoned houses there, on a prepaid, enter at own risk, explore every nook and cranny team building exercise. They are welcomed by the charismatic Milton, who runs the tours through the cul-de-sac he grew up in. They find houses filled with malevolent ghosts and tragic ones, with memories of family trauma and family meals. All come out changed by what they see, and what it triggers in them. Some will be lost in Summertime, a euphoric state of mind. Georgia, owner of the Salon, thinks she is stronger than any of it. She has no past trauma, no secrets; some would say no heart. She didn’t expect to fall in love. Every i...

Jules Verne must've been so hungry when he wrote this. About 80% of the book is lists of sea creatures and whether or not they're delicious. Verne was obviously a huge Moby Dick fan and even mentions it a couple times in this book, also emulating Melville's lengthy informational excursions, but I didn't find this to be carried by the writing in the same way as Moby Dick (which is also not a pageturner; let's be real). I also saw elements of Poe's sci-fi/adventure works but with less suspense. Overall, the characters other than Captain Nemo and Professor Aronnax are very flat. Conseil is devoted to Arronax and likes classifying fish and has no other thoughts, feelings, interests or traits. Usually he only serves as an occasion for Arronax to provide information on some topic (quasi "Conseil was sad so I told him the history of the underwater telegraph cable"). Ned Land is angry and talks about eating land animals all the time (confusing because he's...

There are a lot of good thrillers from the 90s, and I'll watch pretty much anything with Signourney Weaver in it. She's great as the traumatized shutin/serial killer expert in this, and it's satisfying to see her profile the killer going after her. It's not quite on a par with some of my favorites like the ones with Morgan Freeman as Alex Cross, but entertaining. Mostly slow-burn but some suspenseful moments. If you like Silence of the Lambs and Seven, this has a similar vibe.

In case you ever have this very niche need, the Upton Sinclair is a literary mocktail I invented a few years ago. I called it that because Upton Sinclair didn't drink alcohol and also appreciated sparkling, slightly tangy drinks (guessing about the second part). So, without further ado: The Upton Sinclair 1 part pink grapefruit juice 2 parts apple juice 7 parts sparkling water Enjoy!