Random Recommendations Friday
Let’s call it “inaugural” in case I decide to do it again someday.
Hey, we’re all busy, so here are a couple of quick recommendations for the week.
Riley Sager’s summer releases have become appointment-reading for me. The author has gained a reputation for writing thrillers with a twist – elevated beach reads, for lack of a better term. Stories that can be easily digested, yet have a bit more substance than most books released between May and August.
With a Vengeance, his 2025 title, is a mix between And Then There Were None and Murder on the Orient Express – a mystery set on a train racing from Philadelphia to Chicago, where one after another, the seven passengers get taken out. Of course, the real question is who – and/or what – brought them together on the train, and are they actually alone? See, you may think you know the answer, but with Sager, everything is up in the air.
It’s a brisk read, and, more importantly, entertaining from page one. Find more information on Amazon.
I’ve always been a fan of Anthony Mackie (best known as the second Captain America) and Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine), and I’m happy to see them together in the post-apocalyptic parody-level-violent comedy/action show Twisted Metal.
And, yes, that is Will Arnett dubbing Joe Seanoa’s Sweet Tooth.
There are currently twenty-two episodes to watch, so run over to Peacock to give it a shot. Spokane is strongly represented, too!
I previously recommended the music-doc-meets-fiction film, Pavements, so throwing out an actual Pavement album endorsement seems appropriate.
Wowee Zowee was, at the time of its release, panned by critics, but has since been reappraised, and is by many considered the band’s best album1. While both jangly and lackadaisical, it is also catchy:
Stream the album on Apple Music, or Amazon Music, or wherever one streams music these days. Or, better yet, buy it on vinyl. Wowee Zowee is famously a double album that only has music on three out of four sides. It’s not called slacker rock for nothing.
And, if you’re in the mood for more Pavement-related documentaries, the one on their first drummer, Gary Young, is worth watching.
Louder Than You Think streams on Fandor.
I’d go with Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, but I’m basic.