Saturday, May 9, 2015

Author Spotlight: Linda Grimes on Books-to-Movies

 Hello there, everyone! My name is Jackie, and I'm your host for the day. And every other day a post pops up on No Bent Spines. *chuckles

First off, how is everyone? Did y'all see The Avengers? What are your thoughts? Personally, I can't actually decide if I'm feeling the ending. I mean, The Avengers are The Avengers. 

Let's get to the spotlight. I'd like to thank the lovely Ms. Linda Grimes and Desirae for contacting me about the post. Mostly because I adore the answers. The topic today?

Books-to-Movies. 

Should be fun. So, without further ado, here are her top 4 adaptations!




1. Gone With The Wind, by Margaret Mitchell. Because it's freaking GWTW! I read this book at least ten times before I turned thirteen. When I first saw the movie, at about age twelve, I was completely swept up in the gloriously epic romance. The lush spectacle of it was enough to awe me for weeks. Heck, Vivien Leigh's right eyebrow should have received separate billing. And Clark Gable as Rhett? *swoon* I was one depressed little girl when I found out he'd died long before I even knew he existed.

2. Holes, by Louis Sachar. This delightfully, quirkily warped (and I mean that in the very best way) movie perfectly captures the feel of the book. So often, even faithful adaptions fail to hit upon that special alchemy, so kudos to the director, Andrew Davis, for bringing Sachar's vision to life on the screen. Of course, it probably didn't hurt that Sachar also wrote the screenplay. Which is an amazing feat in itself, because writing a screenplay is a whole different kettle of fish than writing a novel. Plus, Sigourney Weaver is delightfully shudder-inducing as the warden.

3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by J.K. Rowling. I enjoyed all of the HP movies, but Azkaban is the best, in my opinion. The film translated the mood and tone of the book in a way that was truly magical for me. The three lead actors seemed more than ever to embody the characters of Harry, Ron, and Hermione. And, of course, Gary Oldman positively rocked it as Sirius Black, one of my all-time favorite HP characters.

4. Outlander, by Diana Gabaldon. Okay, this one is fudging a bit, because it's a book-to-television adaption. But, seriously, they are doing such a fantastic job with the first season. It's difficult at best to bring iconic characters like Claire and Jamie to the screen without disappointing legions of rabid book fans, but Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan are doing an impressive job of it. Tobias Menzies, in the dual roles of Frank Randall and Black Jack Randall, is nothing short of amazing—equally believable as the diffidently charming scholar and the sadistic Redcoat. No adaptation can completely encompass a whole novel, but this TV series seems to have captured the heart of my favorite book. And don't even get me started on the finer points of men in kilts!


The Big Fix, coming soon to you May 12, 2015. Find it on goodreads.
Published by Tor

Aura adaptor extraordinaire Ciel Halligan, who uses her chameleon-like abilities to fix her clients’ problems—as them—is filling in on set for action superstar Jackson Gunn, whose snake phobia is standing in the way of his completing his latest mega-millions Hollywood blockbuster. There’s only one thing Jack fears more than snakes, and that's the possibility of his fans finding out he screams at the sight of one. Going from hero to laughing stock isn’t part of his career plan.

Seems like a simple enough job to Ciel, who doesn’t particularly like snakes, but figures she can tolerate an afternoon with them, for the right price—which Jack is offering, and then some. What she doesn’t count on is finding out that while she was busy wrangling snakes for him, his wife was busy getting killed. When Ciel goes to break the sad news to the star, she finds out Jack was AWOL from her client hideaway at the time of the murder.

Ciel begins to suspect Jack’s phobia was phony, and that he only hired her to provide him with an alibi—but if she goes to the police, she’ll have to explain how she knows he wasn’t really on set. Up against a wall, Ciel calls on her best-friend-turned-love-interest Billy, and her not-so-ex-crush Mark, to help her set up the sting of a lifetime.



Leave Ms. Grimes some thoughts. I mean, what are some of YOUR favorite book-to-movies. I can't get over all of the different Mr. Darcys in the world. Uhm, swooooon. 


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